Victory is Life!
by fablesrogue
Summary: My first attempt at Zaion's Ship of the Line challenge on tth. Xander, Jonathan, Andrew and Warren all did a stupid thing for Halloween. Now the Powers want them gone from Earth. It's just as well that Janus has a Job for them in Pegasus.
1. Chapter 1

**Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Stargate Atlantis Fanfiction**

**Disclaimer: - **I don't own Buffy; Joss does. I don't own Stargate Atlantis either; it belongs to MGM.

**Plot: - **Ship of the Line Fiction. Xander, Jonathan, Andrew and Warren all did a stupid thing for Halloween. Now the Powers want them gone from Earth. It's just as well that Janus has a Job for them in Pegasus.

* * *

**Ship of the Line: Victory is Life!**

"_I am First Omet'iklan, and I am dead.  
__As of this moment, we are all dead.  
__We go into battle to reclaim our lives.  
This we do gladly, for we are Jem'Hadar.  
__Remember: Victory is Life!"_

Excerpt from Star Trek Deep Space Nine 4x23 – To the Death.

* * *

**Chapter.1: -**** Fearful Symmetry**

_**July 28**__**th**__** 2004**_

_**Athosian System – Pegasus Galaxy**_

_**Athos – Night**_

The Athosian's looked up at the starry night sky above their homeworld and marvelled at the sight. All too brief flashes and shooting streaks of light could be seen flying across the darkened sky and had all of the Athosian's wondering if what they were witnessing was either a gift from the Ancestors, or an ill omen that the Wraith were on their way.

There had been the occasional shooting star seen over the years, but nothing of the intensity that was witnessed this night.

"Father, is it a sign from the Ancestors?" Asked an amazed and wide eyed Jinto as he and his young friend Wex looked up and watched as a particularly large flare ignited up a small section of the sky. Halling looked down at his son as he and Teyla stood close by and observed the other Athosian's watching the spectacle. What could he say to his Son? He and Teyla truly suspected what was happening beyond their world as did he suspect some of the others.

They had heard the rumours about _them_ from some of their trading partners off world. From the Genii and the Satedan's and many, many others, they had told the Athosian's about them. "Anything is possible, son."

They had first appeared over ten seasons ago; when the Wraith where laying waste to one of the outlying worlds and culling it's populace. It was said from many of the survivors that they appeared out of thin air and begun fighting the Wraith. That they had just shimmered into being, seemingly out of nothingness. Dozens and dozens of grey skinned soldiers in dark grey and black uniforms, carrying fearsome weaponry that was able to even halt the scourge that was the Wraith and drive them back.

Teyla and Halling had met some of those survivors when they had decided to find out more about these beings. At first they had thought that they were warriors of the Ancestors themselves. A first wave of sorts; come back to finally end the Wraith but after finding out more information about these beings from other survivors that had escaped from culled worlds, they reconsidered that notion.

The two Athosian's had first met with them after being told of them by their trading partners. They remember one person, a young boy called Riven. He had told the two that the soldiers were able to push the Wraith ground forces back towards their cruisers and fighters. That their weapons were powerful enough to even damage their fighters severely, if not destroy them utterly.

Such news had the two hoping for the best. The best for them and their people; their friends and families, for the people of this galaxy. Hoping that whoever these beings were, they were friendly towards humans. Because in a galaxy ruled by an alien race that culled humanity for food, hope was the only thing they had.

* * *

_**Athosian Space**_

When the fighting had begun soon after both fleets had entered the system and engaged each other, it had quickly descended into hell and had quickly become a massacre for both sides. Two fleets, one comprised of unknown Starships and a single fleet of Wraith ships were hitting each other with everything they had at their disposal. A hundred Wraith fighters performed strafing runs on twelve Warships, Battlecruisers and huge Battleships that weren't even of comparable size of an enemy Hive, but they had all too quickly proved to the Wraith how powerful and destructive they were.

Dozens of ships, both Wraith and the unknown enemy they were engaged against had already been destroyed; floating, burnt out husks of broken metal and organic material. Great vessels of destruction floated endlessly in the black vacuum, debris was colliding with ships on both sides and causing damage to ships of either fleet. And on one such vessel, a command ship belonging to the Wraith's enemy… "Incoming enemy fighter's! Bearing zero nine – seven Mark seven! They're strafing us!" Shouted one of the unknown warriors as he held onto his console and braced for impact.

"**THOOM!**"

The massive battleship rocked under the impact as Wraith weapons fire slammed against the huge vessel's shields. The officer checked one of the displays on his console after the weapons fire subsided. "Shield's down to fifty – eight percent! Minor damage to port side hull plating! Port side weapons array offline, rerouting power to secondary weapons array!" He said, informing his captain.

As the officer entered the various commands on his console to do as he said, he looked at his sensor display and saw that two hive ships were on an intercept course for their position. He turned his gaze towards his commanding officer, the First. "Sir, two enemy hive ships on an intercept course! Bearing zero two five Mark two nine!"

The First looked towards his Tactical Officer. "Order the Third and Eighth attack groups to engage those hives!" The First said as he stood next to his Comm Officer; the officer briskly nodded his head as he sent the order to the attack groups in question. He nodded in satisfaction as he saw the ships beginning their attack runs against their targets on his status display. The attack ships had soon done their job and had gotten the enemy's attention.

The First then spoke to his helmsman. "Helm, bring us about! Take us straight at those Hive ships!"

The officer at the helm acknowledged the order and brought the huge ships' engines to full impulse. The mighty Battleship started moving between its own forces as its violet coloured warp nacelles flared brighter as a result of the Matter/Anti – Matter collision. Despite its incredible size, the Battleship moved with an agility that belied its size of over twelve hundred metres.

The First held onto the communications console as the ship was rocked once again by enemy fire; sparks and small fires erupted from behind dark grey panels on the walls and the conduits behind them; the tactical officer, a young officer of only four years was rocked by the small explosion and was thrown over his console. The First moved to check on the officer and grimaced when he saw that the young being had two pieces of shrapnel buried in his back. He knew that he was dead; he moved over towards the tactical console and armed a volley of polaron torpedoes and targeted both hives. "Helm, distance to target?" He shouted as he was unable to tell since his sensor display was offline; having to rely on the information provided by his Helmsman; he trusted the younger warrior of two years of age.

"Distance to target, seven hundred kilometres and closing, sir!" The Helmsman briefly noticed that six ships from the Eighth attack group had come under heavy fire from one of the Hive's and the others had engaged evasive manoeuvres, trying to dodge the incoming weapons fire. All too soon though, those ships' shields collapsed under heavy bombardment, soon their hulls were hammered until they buckled and the ships exploded; killing all hands on board.

"HELM, DISTANCE!?" Shouted the First as conduits exploded around the bridge; behind him his finger hovered over the fire button on the tactical console; as his Battleship moved closer towards its targets, he had briefly rerouted power to his sensor display through his ship's tertiary EPS conduits to bypass the damaged conduits. Looking at the display he could see the punishment that the Third and Eighth attack groups were under. He growled as he saw three other ships' from the Eighth were destroyed by heavy weapons fire from one of the Hive's.

"Distance to target, five hundred kilometres, sir!" The officer at the Helm responded as the ship shook under heavy bombardment.

The First grinned and quickly tapped to the control; he grinned even more when he saw the barrage of torpedoes launching and quickly hitting their targets. The remaining ships from the Third and Eighth attack groups had broken off from their attack run on their target's and had moved away from the resulting explosions. Only one thought entered his mind as he watched the destruction of the two Hives: 'What I wouldn't give for a Twinkie right about now.'

And what a pair of explosions it was! A total of twenty – four polaron torpedoes had been fired at both Hives and had caused massive damage; the organic hulls of both Hive's had been ripped and torn asunder from the attack and the explosions that quickly followed. Plumes of fire, both internal and external could soon be seen as both Hives were ripped apart and destroyed. Once again the First grinned and quickly reacquired another target.

All across the system, similar battles were taking place, as dozens of Starships and Wraith Hives, Cruisers and attack craft of all shapes and sizes engaged in a monumental battle that would ultimately determine the fate of this System and the people of Athos.

Just as similar battles were waging on multiple fronts in other parts of the Pegasus Galaxy.

* * *

_**Athosian Camp – Same Time**_

The villagers looked up in awe once more as they witnessed two bright flashes of light in the night sky; some of them had gathered together with their families and friend's as they watched in wonder as the spectacle to them lit the sky up and amazed them. Surely the Ancestors had deigned to gift them with an omen; a silent promise that the children of the Ancestors weren't forgotten, that they were soon returning to defeat the Wraith.

Halling had walked over to Teyla as the young woman had been talking to her friend, Charin. "What do you make of it, Teyla?"

She stared at Halling intently, trying to order her thoughts as she had suddenly felt the unease she usually feels when the Wraith were nearby, but her other senses were telling her that only her people were nearby and for that, she was grateful. "I do not know, Halling…."

The Man looked thoughtful for a moment before he interrupted her. "Do you think it possible? That it could be a sign from the Ancestors?"

Teyla smiled and placed her hand on his arm in a gesture of comfort and friendship.

"I think anything is possible, my friend."

He looked at her gratified for the gesture; turning back toward his son and Wex he went back over to them and sat himself by Jinto. Teyla watched on as her friend shared the wonder of the night with his boy before she turned to see Charin had left her. Looking around she saw the form of the elderly woman heading back towards her tent and Teyla followed.

"Charin? Are you well?" The Athosian Leader asked as she saw the old woman sit herself down on her cot.

Charin looked up and smiled saccharinely at her. "Oh, Teyla. You know that I haven't been well for a long time."

Charin motioned for the young woman to enter and sit beside her as she had picked up a stirrer and began to stir the pot of Tuttle root soup she had been preparing moments earlier. She noticed the unease returning on Teyla's face and she asked her what was wrong.

"It's nothing, Charin…." Teyla begun.

"You're a terrible liar, my dear. What troubles you, Teyla?" The old woman asked.

Teyla was about to say that she wasn't troubled, but a slight look from the elder told her otherwise. "You've heard the rumours about… _them_, haven't you? The beings that are said to have been fighting the Wraith?"

Charin kept on stirring as she answered her young friend. "Only in passing. I hear people talk about mysterious warriors with grey skin and powerful weaponry; that they are able to appear out of nothingness as if they were spirits and vanish just as easily. Why, child?"

Teyla took a deep breath before she responded. "I have been told that the Wraith have awoken. All of them."

Charin frowned at the news. She had not heard this rumour until now; she trusted Teyla not to lie to her, but she couldn't help but wonder; if the Wraith have truly awoken then why haven't they come to their World to cull their people? It was a question that Teyla had been pondering as well. "If what you say is true, then surely the Wraith would've already come to Athos. But it is too early since the last Culling."

Teyla nodded her head. She knew that it had been too soon since the last Culling for the Wraith to be awake; she also thought that the wretched menace would've shown up already, so, if the rumours were true, why haven't they?

"Yes. Their Ships would've been here by now…." The young Leader trailed off as she decided how best to tell her friend this next bit of news.

"Teyla?" Charin asked her pensive friend.

She took in another breath. "As you know, we have a lot of trading partners…"

Charin nodded her head.

"On our last trade to Sateda, I was approached by a soldier I have made an acquaintance with. His name is Ronan; he has told me something… strange."

Charin motioned for her to continue with a nod of her head. "He told me that he was off world, scouting for potential colony sites for the Satedan's to set up. He said that it was in a lush jungle that he had seen them. Ronan had told me that they were just like they were in the stories told about them. Grey skinned, carried powerful looking weaponry and wore dark clothing. He told me that he tracked them for six days, all the way back to a canyon where they had all vanished soon afterward."

Charin listened intently to the story as Teyla continued. "Ronan told me that he followed them into the canyon, but had quickly lost sight of them; he said, for a further two days he looked everywhere within that canyon for any sign of them but he couldn't find anything, so eventually he had given up and returned back to the entrance of the Canyon and rested for the night."

"Go on, Teyla." Said Charin as she had deemed the Tuttle root soup to be done and picked up a bowl to fill and offer to her friend, Teyla graciously accepted the bowl and began to eat as Charin made a bowl for herself.

"He told me that night had already fallen when he was awoken by a loud humming sound and was soon surrounded by a bright light as it illuminated the area around him; he looked up as soon as the light had gone off and he saw…" Again, Teyla trailed off as she tried to find the words to describe what Ronan said he saw.

"What did he see, Teyla?"

"He said he saw bright violet lights heading up into the night sky. That he could also see pieces of darkened metal as well. He said that he had never seen anything like it before and that he hadn't seen anything like it since that night."

Charin looked thoughtful. "A ship?" She speculated out loud.

Teyla shrugged her shoulders but had thought that it could've been. But everyone in the galaxy knew that the Wraith does not tolerate any race with advanced technology. "It is possible." She started. "But you know as well as I that the Wraith – " Teyla stopped speaking and let out a breath and shook of her head. Of course Charin knew that the Wraith didn't allow any race to gain a technological foothold other than what they basically needed. She took another sip of her soup and then continued speaking. She told her friend that if what Ronan said was true, then could the ship have belonged to them?

Charin told her that the answer to that was most obvious. "Surely Teyla; if these… beings have great weaponry with which to do battle with the Wraith, then it is understandable that the ship your friend saw could very well be theirs. We have not heard of the Wraith having such a ship that he described to you."

Charin said in a friendly tone as the two continued to eat their Soup; Teyla considered it and couldn't help but finding Charin's point valid.

Teyla conceded with a brief nod. "Alright." She said to her friend.

With that, the two friends sat there and continued with their meal not knowing that they were being watched by a… _shrouded_ individual. 'Hmm… perhaps the time has finally arrived? Soon… Xander will want to know about this.'

* * *

_**Athosian Space – A Few Minutes Later**_

"Sir, enemy ships are retreating! They're heading out of the sector!"

The First looked over at his Helmsman: "Confirm that!"

The officer rechecked the sensors to confirm that the Wraith were withdrawing from the system. His monitor did show that all surviving Wraith ships that were able were indeed jumping to hyperspace and leaving the Athosian sector. The First looked at his own monitors as the information was relayed to his systems and he confirmed what the officer had stated.

He took notice as enemy fighter's either turned tail and ran, or quickly grouped together with other fighters and headed right for his own surviving forces on a collision course. He quickly saw as some of his own ships in his fleet that were too damaged to defend themselves any further were destroyed; he cursed the Wraith even as he admired their tenacity to inflict devastating losses on his forces even in defeat.

"Shall I order our ships to pursue, sir?" Asked the First's communications officer; the warrior obediently awaited the order from his commanding officer.

A moment passed. "… no. Order all surviving ships to report their status and fall back to Athos and hold position there. We need to ensure that no Wraith made it down to the planet. What are our own losses?" Showing no signs of countermanding his First's order, the officer quickly relayed the order to all remaining ships as the Helmsman set course to head to the planet, he then checked his sensors to find out how many ships they had remaining. It didn't take long.

"Sir, we lost half of our forces and some of our ships are heavily damaged… most of them are unable to go to warp let alone enter hyperspace…" He trailed off as he saw the First's glare. He knew that he had done nothing wrong; he knew that his Commander was grieving the loss of so many valued officers under his command.

"**BEEP!**"

The communication's officer looked at his console as a message piped into his system: "Sir, subspace communique coming in from First Mears! Our forces near Lantea have reported that the Wraith forces encroaching in the Lantean sector have been destroyed. We lost thirty percent of our forces defending the sector, though the Wraith forces have been completely routed."

The First took the news in stride. While he grieved for the loss of his forces at Lantea, he knew that his friend had made sure that for every ship, every warrior killed under his command, Mears made the Wraith pay a hundred fold.

"Understood. Anything else?" He asked as he motioned to three warriors to approach. He ordered two of them to remove the body of the dead tactical officer from the bridge and the other to take over his post at tactical as he made his way over to the communications console.

"First Mears reports that his sensors have detected a gravimetric distortion coming from the planet Lantea. It's the same distortion we have observed when the Stargates are activated only he says that the readings are twenty – eight percent higher than normal. He wishes to know if he should investigate." Replied the comms officer.

The First stood attentively as he listened to the report coming in. Ever since he and his friends had met Janus that night eight years ago, they had been expecting this. The 'Chaos God' had told them that they soon wouldn't be alone in their war against the Wraith. They would soon receive help from a surprising source. And that Lantea would be the world that help would come from.

After a brief moments thought, Xander instructed the communications officer to inform Warren to gather all the data he can and then to secure the system from further Incursion from the Wraith and then head back home. Whoever it was that was arriving through the Ring, he didn't want them to know that his forces had been there fighting yet. "Contact First Levinson down on the planet. Inform him to prepare for transport. We're leaving as soon as soon as our ships are able to do so."

The First turned towards his Helm Officer. "Taran'Atar; you have Command. I'm going to transporter room four."

"Yes, Commander."

"Sir, First Levinson reports he is ready for transport." Stated the Comm officer as the First briskly made his way to the turbolift and headed for the transporter room.

* * *

_**Transporter Room – A Few Minutes Later**_

The First entered and nodded his head at the officer and the guard posted there. "Energise."

The officer keyed in the sequence and immediately, First Levinson stood there on the transporter pad, his polaron rifle in hand as he stood to attention and looked at his fellow Officer.

"How was the battle?" Jonathan asked as he stepped off the pad, handed his rifle to the guard and walked out of the room with Xander.

"We lost half of our forces and most of our ships won't be able to fly for a while; but we beat the Wraith back. We're conducting repairs as fast as we can but then we're going. I'll leave the Fourth, Seventh and the Ninth attack groups here to secure and patrol the system." Xander said to his friend.

Jonathan knew that his friend was angry that he had lost so many Warriors in fighting the Wraith. So was he, but he did worry for his friend. Despite the changes they had all gone through as a group. Being altered by a magic spell on a genetic level into Jem'Hadar soldiers commanding a massive Dominion Fleet and then having to leave everything you knew behind for nearly eight years would do that to you. There were times when it seemed to him and the other's that Xander seemed to take the burden of this war on his own shoulders.

At first he, Warren and Andrew didn't understand why but when they had confronted Xander about it after their first major battle with the Wraith on a planet they were defending, he'd told them that they were vampires when they found him surrounded by a bunch of dead Wraith at his feet, and him with his Kar'takin blade in one hand dripping rivulets of black blood onto the ground and his plasma rifle, with its blade attachment extended and steeped in blood in his other. _"Janus didn't tell us… I saw how they feed. They're like the vamps on Earth... they don't drink blood, but they're exactly like them. I saw a young woman get the life sucked out of her through a Wraith's goddamn hand on her chest. His hand! It had a look of rapturous joy on its face as it watched the woman wither away, she aged and turned to bone right before my fucking eyes." _

"_Xander… oh god…" _Jono remembered himself starting to say as he looked at the state of his friend but Xander had kept speaking as if he hadn't even heard him.

"_They're just like the vampires back home. Just like 'em... they glorified in the pain they inflicted on these people… No conscience, no remorse, no pity… no mercy. Not a trace. Nothing! So I'll show them none. Not one ounce or iota of mercy... I'm going to kill them all."_

Xander took a deep breath and calmed himself. "Anything else happen?" Jonathon asked as they waited to arrive at their destination.

"Warren destroyed the Wraith at Lantea. He lost thirty percent of his forces, but he won…."

"That's good, right?" He asked as he heard Xander trail off. His friend looked like he had something to say.

"Xander? What else happened there?"

He looked at Jono and told him what Warren had discovered from the planet. Jono looked thoughtful as Xander told him about the gravimetric distortion and the indication that the ring on the planet had activated. "So, you think that what Janus told us is finally happening? That we're getting help finally in fighting the Wraith?"

"I do." Xander said as the turbo lift finally stopped and the two of the stepped out into the corridor; Xander noticed that some of the panel's had been ruptured and a computer display had been blown out as he and Jono walked past the damage. Many of the Jem'Hadar were conducting repairs as they walked on down the corridor.

"So how was it down on the planet?" Xander asked as he and Jono stepped inside the conference room at the end of the hallway.

"It was alright; I heard them talking about the lightshow up here. They thought that it was an omen from the Ancestors… Xander?"

"Yeah?"

"I think we need to show ourselves to the Athosian's." Jono spoke. Xander sat down as Jono told him his suggestion of revealing their existence properly to the people on the planet.

"They're good people and they already know we're out there. The rumours going around about us are still gaining strength. We need to show ourselves now. That way we can start gathering allies to help against the Wraith."

"No."

"Xander…"

"I said no, Jono. I will not be responsible for that. Not again." Xander told him, nearly growling at his friend. The pain of what happened five years ago still fresh in his memory.

"Xander, Chaya doesn't blame you for what happened… What happened on Proculus wasn't your fault."

"I said no, Jono! Drop it. Please." Xander asked. Sighing, Jono nodded at his friend. Tabling the discussion for now, but he promised himself that he would get Xander to face what had happened there. It was the most he could do.

"So, who do you think it is?" Jono asked, changing the subject like a pro.

"Huh?"

"The Stargate. Who do you think it is arriving on Lantea? The Ancients? Ooh, dare I say it even, Earth?" Xander chuckled even as he was impressed with Jono's ability to change the subject. Truthfully, he didn't know, he just hoped that whoever it was actually capable of assisting them in the war.

* * *

_**Atlantis – Shortly after the Battle for the Lantean Sector**_

As the final handful of people stepped through the Stargate and into their new home, they looked around in wonder. To be here finally, in Atlantis. The City of the Ancients. For all of them it was the dream of a lifetime as each and everyone of them, from Lt. Aiden Ford and Major John Shepard to Dr. Rodney Mackay and Radek Zelenka and other scientists looked forward to what awaited them in this new galaxy.

They should have stayed on Earth.

The leader of the expedition, Elizabeth Weir looked on at the people under her command as she herself was amazed at their surroundings and shared her personnel's dream. Seeing that everyone had now arrived, she stepped closer to the event horizon and lifted her radio. "General O'Neill. The Atlantis expedition brings you greetings from the Pegasus Galaxy."

* * *

**_Author's Note: -_**

I'm back from Mykonos and with one of my earlier SoTL stories that I first posted on tth. I came up with this idea because it was the next logical step in the challenge in my opinion. Many writers who had written SoTL fics had the main character's assume human captain persona's and there were hardly ever any alien ones. Hence, Xander and the nerds as Jem'Hadar warriors (No Founders or Vorta). I'd still like to see someone write Xander dressing up as a Klingon though and kicking Goa'uld ass... or maybe a Romulan... oh, the possibilties... D'deridex Class Warbirds or the Negh'Var against Goa'uld Ha'taks and Replicators anyone?

Now on to more happy news - I have a new daughter in the family and I am ecstatic and so is my newly married daughter and her wife to be a part of it - Yay!

So now that the wedding is done and out of the way, updating my stories regularly shouldn't be a problem anymore (My fingers are crossed as I'm typing this!)

The Prideful Ch.11 should be up in a weeks time, Ch.2 for Victory is Life should be up by the weekend as i'm currently rewriting it and correcting the grammar.

Peace.

_**PS**_

Who remembers a game for the PSOne called Colony Wars? See, I remember Colony Wars...


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter.2: - ****The Rising Tides of War**

"_Then one day, our people stepped forth upon a dark world where a terrible enemy slept. Never before had we encountered beings with powers that rivalled our own. In our over – confidence, we were unprepared and outnumbered. The enemy fell upon defenceless human worlds like a great scourge until finally only Atlantis remained. This city's great shield was powerful enough to withstand their terrible weapons but here, we were besieged for many years. In an effort to save the last of our kind, we submerged the great city into the ocean. The Atlantis Stargate was the one and only link back to Earth from this galaxy, and those who remained used it to return to that world that was once home. There, the last survivors of Atlantis lived out the remainder of their lives. This city was left to slumber, in the hope that our kind would one day return."_

Excerpt from Stargate Atlantis 1x01 – Rising. 

* * *

_**July 28**__**th**__** 2004**_

_**Xander's Battleship**_

_**Hyperspace**_

_**En route to the Tritana Prime Shipyards* – Jem'Hadar Territory**_

Fifty – seven ships. That's how many Starships there were in his fleet that had been beyond repair after the battle for the Athosian System that Xander had ordered to be scuttled and destroyed before he departed the sector. He had done as he has always done in the past to prevent the Wraith from capturing any of his ships and learning about their technology.

And he was getting sick of it.

Out of a fleet originally comprised of one hundred and eighty Starships, a further Fifty – seven ships were gone. And that was excluding the eighteen ships that made up the Fourth, Seventh and Ninth attack groups that Xander had currently patrolling the Athosian System, leaving him with one hundred and five ships that were en route to one of the main Shipyards he controlled.

It had been over three hours since that battle and Xander was pissed; as he stood in his Battleship's war room overlooking a real – time holographic representation of the Pegasus Galaxy overlooking the latest intelligence reports that were coming in from the various war fronts via the subspace beacons he and the other's had placed all over Pegasus years before the war had escalated, the hologram showed a snaking divide running through the display, on one side of the hologram, it was coloured red, signifying Wraith controlled systems whilst the other was white; it showed the current state of the war against the Wraith; the four former Sunnydalian's forces were currently holding twenty – eight percent of the Galaxy from the Wraith while the enemy were pushing their way forwards just as Xander's Jem'Hadar forces were also pushing back and further into Wraith territory in other parts of Pegasus.

'Wraith incursion near Satedan space, Wraith taking heavy losses at Karra; I ain't crying over that. Troops deployed on Jenev and Dalera. Wraith cruisers spotted in the Thenoran sector and near… Proculus…!' His thoughts trailed off as he saw the name of the Planet mentioned. Proculus was on the furthest edge of the border between the two territories; while there were still people living there, striving to survive the devastation that was wrought upon them during the opening days of the war.

Xander placed the PADD he was reading from down as he manipulated the console near the display to locate and highlight Proculus. The holograms image changed as the display magnified and immediately homed in on the planet. The display showed a world, once considered to be a paradise by its Inhabitants and their protector, Athar. Xander knew what the planet looked like now. Half of the planet was scarred and burning; a third of its people culled.

And he believed that it was his fault, all because he had taken Athar… Chaya away from them for two days, he had offered to show her their Starships and technology, as he sought permission to use the planet as a staging area for his forces to push into Wraith territory. Promising to provide protection for the inhabitants from the Wraith, during the negotiations with the beautiful woman, Xander could understand her reluctance at first to deny him access to the planet; Chaya didn't want her people to be harmed, nor did she want them to be affected by the changes technology such as theirs could've imposed.

She had told Xander that Athar would protect them… but only them and no one else.

Xander had at first thought that Athar was some kind of deity; his own experience with Janus and the hellmouth lending credence to his theory, but when the truth had been revealed to him that Chaya was actually Athar, the ascended Ancient punished by the others of her kind to protect Proculus from the Wraith for eternity, he was distraught to learn that he had taken their protector away.

So, while he had decided not to use the planet as a staging area for his forces, he did vow to keep the system secure from any further incursions as a way of penance for the damage he believes he had inflicted on the people during the opening days of the war.

He watched as the display pulled away from the planet and zoomed in on the Wraith cruisers in the system. There were three of them just on the outskirts of the sector probing along the border. Xander had two attack groups in that area but they were currently on the other side of the System.

Not for long he thought. "Order the Fifth attack group near Proculus to engage those cruisers. I want them destroyed immediately." Xander turned towards the warrior in charge of the intelligence gathering for that sector of space, the warrior turned towards his commander and acknowledged the order.

"Aye, sir."

'No more.' He thought to himself as he turned back towards the hologram. He stared at the display for a few moments longer, observing the ever changing reports coming in from various battlefronts before he registered his forces in the system moving to intercept and destroy the enemy cruisers.

Hoping to take his troubled mind off of Proculus, the Jem'Hadar commander turned to the PADD he had been perusing just moments ago. Once more reading intelligence reports coming in from the Front, he had just finished reading that Jem'Hadar forces under Jono's command had attacked a Wraith convoy and liberated over two thousand humans and was escorting them to the closest Sanctuary world they had secured from the Wraith.

Just as he was about to leave the war room, the ships internal communications sounded. "Commander Harris, we're approaching Tritana Prime."

"Good. Drop us out of Hyperspace and contact the automated orbital shipyards. Tell them to prepare for us. I want my ships fully repaired within seventy – two hours." Xander informed his Comms Officer as he exited the war room and made his way towards the turbo lift. "Bridge."

Stepping inside the turbo lift; and telling the computer his destination, Xander suddenly heard a beeping alert coming from his uniform. Frowning until he found the source of the noise and what it entailed, he grimaced. He needed a new phial of White.

This was something he hated doing and he cursed Janus for making him and his friend's no better than addicts so that the god could ensure their loyalty in fighting the Wraith. "You know, if I was a spiteful higher being, I could just withhold the White from you and your forces, Xander…"

Xander groaned as he changed the phials; this was what he really needed right now…

"You are a spiteful bastard Janus; you turn the four of us into Jem'Hadar; coerce me and my friends into fighting a war your people ran away from millions of years ago. You turn us into no better than drug addicts so you can ensure your control over us to fix your mistakes. You're no better than the Changeling's and the Vorta."

"That's harsh, Alexander. I gave you the tools with which to fight this war. I gave you everything you needed to defeat the Wraith; it's not easy piercing the walls of reality you know. I'm not like this Q being you think I am. I brought you and your friend's to Tritana so that you could build up your powerbase here in Pegasus… it was the last hidden outpost we had from the Wraith. Not even the Atlantis High Council knew of its existence since I hid it from them. You had everything you needed there." The being stated as he leant against the wall of the lift.

"I call it as I see it, Janus; if you want to prove you're not even remotely like Q; then free us from the White." Xander said to the sighing higher being, before he continued. "But you won't will you? You want your leash over us to hold so that we can be your good little attack dogs and sort out the mess _you Lantean's_ made. What do you want?" The former Sunnydalian asked as he turned and glared at the higher being that had suddenly appeared inside the turbo lift with him.

Janus smirked at him. He was smirking at him! Xander wished that he could wipe that self – satisfied grin off of his face. "You're still going on about that!? Xander, do me a favour… get over it. It's been eight years already. I told you that I'd free you from the White as soon as all of the Wraith are destroyed. And look at what you've accomplished already; you've made the Wraith pause. They have never faced a race as tenacious and unyielding as the Jem'Hadar since my people. You're both similar in that regard."

Xander wanted to roar at the ascended ass, he hated him; he really did, even if Janus was looking out for the humans in Pegasus, he didn't have to be such a dick about it. And he didn't have to take four teenagers from the planet Earth, permanently transform them into Jem'Hadar and ask them to fight an alien species that used humans as food.

But what Xander hated most of all was himself for agreeing to fight the Wraith in the first place. His protective streak was such a burden to him sometimes, because he missed his friends. He missed _her._ "Easy. Easy there, Alex; I'm only here to deliver the new supplies of White and to keep you informed about your… family' as per our arrangement." Janus said, seeing the cloud of rage quickly forming in the boy's eyes.

At hearing that, Xander had calmed down, the stress of having to deal with the Ascended Douchebag lessening for the moment as he asked. "Buffy and the others! How are they doing? There's nothing wrong with them is there?"

Despite Janus's coercion of Xander and his friends, he truly did care for the people of Earth and Pegasus and he had indeed regretted forcing the Slayer's White Knight and his friends into this situation, but he needed them.

What happened that night on Halloween had presented an opportunity for the ascended Ancient to capitalise on. Tapping into the energy of the hellmouth, Janus had made the changes Xander and the others had gone through permanent as he drew on the power of the hellmouth to bring Jem'Hadar Starships and resources into being.

He had known that the Powers That Be were planning to get rid of the boy that had caused their plans to go off kilt since he had revived the Slayer but foreseeing Xander's usefulness, Janus had spirited them away before the Powers could make their move against him and the others. But that was another thing he regretted. Xander's friends and surrogate family had thought him dead after Halloween. "They're all fine, Xander. They have restarted the Watcher's Council and have begun training the new Slayer's that were activated during the battle with the First Evil. Buffy and Dawn are living in Rome while Giles is in England. Faith and Robin are in Cleveland overseeing the new Slayers there and the awakened hellmouth. They're fine."

Xander breathed a sigh of relief. Fearing the worst after what Janus had told him had happened to Cordelia and Deadboy in Los Angeles the last time the ascended ancient had dropped in for a visit, he frowned when Janus hadn't mentioned Willow and Tara. "What about Wills and Tara? How are they?"

Janus hesitated; he knew that Xander would ask about those two and he was reluctant to tell the boy about his surrogate sister. "Janus?"

"They… broke up four months ago. Again."

"What!?" Xander exclaimed as he fully rounded on the higher being.

"Willow cheated on her. With a Slayer called Kennedy. Tara found them in bed together in the Cleveland House. So she left for England; Willow has been trying to talk to her ever since it happened, but Ms. Maclay hasn't reciprocated. Willow and Kennedy went to Rio while Tara and Giles oversee the Council's operations from England."

"Damn it, Willow…" Xander muttered as he absorbed the information. While he was gratified to hear that his friends were alive and well, he couldn't help but think that Willow had just ruined the best thing she had ever had going for her.

Soon the turbo lift had arrived at the bridge and as Xander was about to get out, Janus spoke. "Oh, and by the way. Jono was right about help arriving from Lantea. Your People have found Atlantis… well your _former _people."

And with that before Xander could ask him, the ascended Douche disappeared. "I hate that guy."

The commander soon steeped onto the bridge of his battleship as his second in command, Taran'atar proceeded to tell him that the shipyards were standing by for them; Xander nodded and informed his crew that they had shore leave while their ships were being repaired. It didn't do to have a strung out crew after all. 

* * *

_**Atlantis**_

"… In the hope of spreading new life in a galaxy where there appeared to be none. Soon the new life grew, prospered. Here…" As the Ancient Hologram Lady continued speaking, Dr's. Weir and McKay, Major Shepherd and Colonel Sumner, were still coming to grips over what they had just observed prior. The great city was underwater and everyone was just in awe of the sight. They had all entered the room where Doctor Beckett was standing on a podium listening intently. The others all stare at the hologram as they walk near towards Carson.

"It's a hologram. The recording loops. This is my second time through." Spoke the Scotsman.

Colonel Sumner spoke as he neared the podium. "What have we missed?"

The Scotsman told them that they hadn't missed much. Then they were all listening to the hologram as she continued to narrate the history of Pegasus. It was when the hologram had mentioned a powerful enemy that could rival the Ancients that they had become concerned.

Finally after another minute, the hologram had finished reiterating Atlantis's history shut down; Carson stepped down from the podium leaving everyone in the room to digest what they had heard.

McKay spoke as he looked contemplative. "Oh. So the story of Atlantis is true. A great city that sank in the ocean."

"It just didn't happen on Earth." Carson replied. He wanted to listen to the hologram again.

"Well, the Ancient Greeks must've heard it from one of the surviving Ancients." McKay stated just as a scientist hurried into the room and walked over to the Canadian.

He was observed by Weir and Shepherd for a moment before Col. Sumner spoke up. "I don't like the fact they got their asses kicked."

"Let's hear it again from the beginning." Carson said as he finally moved towards the podium again; he was clearly excited to hear about the Ancients a third time. He stepped back onto the podium and the hologram appeared once more, but before the hologram started to speak, McKay shouted after the scientist he was speaking to stepped off to his side. Worry marred the Canadian's face as he addressed Carson. "Stop! Turn it off."

Carson stepped off of the podium at McKay's insistence, completely ignoring the fact that the hologram had deactivated. McKay then told everyone that the city's power levels are dropping and that caused everyone in the room to start worrying.

"What does that mean?" Sumner asked.

McKay's response to the Colonel's question didn't exactly fill anyone with hope. "That if we don't stop everything we're doing right now, we are dead." He finished; then the scientist, Peter Grodin hurried out of the room as the others stared in shock for a moment and then followed the two scientists out of the room. 

* * *

_**Athosian Space**_

_**Jem'Hadar Fourth Attack Group Patrol **_

_**Same Time**_

First Romat'iklan was a young Jem'Hadar warrior of three years of age; he was an accomplished fighter who had gone up against the Wraith on no less than thirty – seven ground sorties and has fought in over twenty ship – to – ship engagements since his 'birth'.

It was on his last engagement against the Wraith during an incursion into the Wraith controlled Hoffan sector seven months ago, a battle that had cost over five thousand Wraith their lives with the destruction of three Hives and over fifty cruisers as the Jem'Hadar fleet that had liberated the sector after a five hour battle consisted of over ninety attack ships and cruisers, it was after that battle when he had fought alongside with First Harris's attack ship when they had taken down the last Hive together that the rest of their forces had annihilated the remaining Wraith cruiser's that he had been made First and given command of the Fourth attack group personally by Commander Harris.

It was the proudest day of his life; he had brought honour and glory to his Gene Brothers who had fought with him that day, just as they had honoured him with their deeds during that battle and ever since, Romat'iklan had acquitted himself in the command role.

The six ships that made up the Fourth attack group were currently patrolling along the outermost reaches of the Athosian sector's border into Wraith territory as the Seventh and Ninth attack groups were patrolling the opposite ends of the sector as well. Ever since the battle for the system earlier and Commander Harris had ordered them to safeguard the system, they had observed no action from the Wraith since their defeat. But he was no fool; the Wraith had fought tooth and nail for this sector and despite their defeat, he knew that they would not just give up, and so he was patiently waiting for the enemy to make their move.

"Sir, long – range sensors show Wraith cruiser's inbound, they're dropping out of hyperspace and travelling at maximum sub light! They're currently eight hundred thousand kilometres out. ETA… twenty minutes!" Turns out he didn't have to wait long.

The First turned towards his Tactical Officer; the warrior who had given him the news.

"How many ships?" He asked as he stood by the console; the Tactical Officer proceeded to find out how many cruisers were inbound. It took a few moments for him to discern the information. "Sir, I'm reading forty – seven… make that fifty – five cruisers! Sir, I'm also reading… they are launching fighters! Reading a total of a hundred fighter's now acting as escorts, sir!"

Not showing an ounce of concern or fear over the amount of enemy forces that were returning to the system, Romat'iklan nodded and turned towards his Comms Officer. "Contact the Seventh and Ninth attack groups. Inform them of what's coming. Tell them to get ready for battle. Send a subspace message to Commander Harris at Tritana… inform him that the Wraith's… reprisal is imminent."

"Yes, sir!" Said the Comms Officer before he went about his duty. Romat'iklan went over to his Command Station and activated the ship's internal communications. "I am First Romat'iklan, and I am dead. As of this moment, we are all dead. We go into battle to reclaim our lives. This we do gladly, for we are Jem'Hadar. Remember: Victory is Life!"

Romat'iklan waited.

"_Victory is life! Victory is life! Victory is life!" _Was the reply from his crew on board the attack ship; just as was similar on the other attack ships in the group; he grinned a feral smile as he issued his next order.

"All hands! Battle stations!" 

* * *

_**Tritana Prime**_

_**Jem'Hadar Pegasus Defence Force Command &amp; Control **_

_**A Few Minutes Later**_

Xander had disembarked his Battleship as soon as it had docked at the orbital shipyard above the planet three hours earlier he had just finished his after – action report of the battle of Athos three hours previously after he had seen his crew off the ship; transporting down, the former Sunnydalian headed straight for Andrew's main research facility that had been set up on one of the islands to the south of one the planet's main continents.

Tritana was a planet similar to Earth in many ways, it had a moderate climate, its' surface was covered by sixty – four percent of water and had five main landmasses as well as Polar Regions to the north and south of the planet. When Janus had brought them there eight years ago, they had appeared amidst a deserted city surrounded by towering, gleaming structures that stretched out for miles around them.

Janus had left the four of them there all alone after he had taught them how to use the Ancient tech and had assisted as much as he could in setting up the resources they needed, he had explained to them that most Ancient technology needed a specific gene marker to be utilised; a gene that unfortunately none of the four had possessed, so the ascended being had reactivated the Ancient systems there, but there were still some systems that needed the gene marker for continued use.

Janus had taught Andrew and Warren to construct a device that simulated the specific frequency the gene marker gave off to activate the Ancient technology. Now, Tritana was home to over seven billion Jem'Hadar warriors who had been created to fight and liberate a galaxy from the Wraith and more were being 'born' every day. It was the main hub for the construction of Starships, battle cruisers and battleships that Xander, Jono and Warren led into battle against the Wraith.

But it wasn't home for Xander, it would never be home. He couldn't speak for the others, but his home was with his friends and family back on Earth. It was a home where the people that he cares about most have thought him dead for eight years. He couldn't help the pang of loneliness that hit him as soon as he arrived at Andrew's facility and he quickly entered. "Andrew?"

Andrew Wells was not having a good day. As he toiled over one of two prototypes of his latest creation, he cursed as he and his research team tried to correct the latest problem that had befallen his current project. "Ah c'mon…" He muttered as his computer's diagnostic equipment indicated that the latest test he was running had failed. "… work damn it!"

"Andrew?" Xander called out again as he approached closer to the prototype. He stopped and took a moment to admire the object that he stood in front of. When Andrew and Warren had approached him and Jonathan six years ago with an idea for a multi – role fighter craft that they could use as a counterpoint against the Wraith fighters, he and Jonathan were all for it. It would take the edge off of their main attack ships as the Wraith fighters used swarm tactics against their ships to overwhelm their forces.

"Maybe if I… yeah that might do it…" Andrew mumbled this time as he chewed on a loose piece of redundant opticable while he used a plasma infuser on the EPS systems. "… come on, come on work! Work…"

"Andrew!" Xander shouted, calling out his friends name for the third time.

"Ahhh…! oooowwww!" Andrew jerked and hit the back of his head on the underside of the prototype's ventral plating. "… ouch… ah…" He stopped what he was doing and pulled himself out from underneath the project; rubbing his head he looked up and saw Xander looking at him. "Uh, hey Xander…" He said sheepishly.

"Andrew. How's she coming along?" Xander asked as he turned to look at the prototype. Andrew stood and brushed himself off before he walked over and joined Xander's side.

"It's... she's coming along nicely, Xander. The prototype is almost finished…" Andrew began as Xander walked around the perimeter; Andrew quickly trailed behind him as his research team continued about their work. "The uh, the… she's a beauty."

Xander turned his head around and looked at the little scientist before he looked at the area around him. He looked and saw numerous remains of burnt out Wraith fighters with parts missing from them.

The Jem'Hadar had captured a number of fighters during the opening days of the conflict and after he had studied the fighters profusely, Andrew had discovered that some of the Wraith fighter systems were interesting enough to be incorporated into the prototypes design. He had initially decided to create a hybrid fighter using a cut down version of a Jem'Hadar attack ship. He had designed a single occupancy fighter, twelve metres in length by ten metres wide and seven metres high.

It was a cylindrical shape black and dark grey in colour and had two Impulse engines on the rear of the craft; its undercarriage was a standard tripod design but Xander couldn't see any wheels or skids that could support the fighter's bulk. Interesting. He couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to fly.

He could see a micro sized version of a standard torpedo launcher built in on the ventral plating of the fighter's hull near the bow of the fighter; it was just under the fighter's navigational deflector; there was one built in on the aft section as well.

He turned his attention towards the cockpit; it looked tight and compact, but he was fine with that, but what caught his attention was the absence of a drop down canopy. 'Huh.'

He inwardly thought as he turned his gaze towards the wings of the craft; two wings in total with what looked like modified class ten polaron beam emitters on each wing. It looked really familiar to him for some reason almost like he had seen something like it before…

He spun back around and saw that Andrew had come up behind him; he was going to chastise him for making him jump slightly but he thought better of it. Looking at Andrew, Xander could see that he looked rather proud of what he had accomplished so far.

"Yeah. I swear I've seen something similar to it before."

Andrew smirked at him. "You probably have. I did get the idea for the shape from an old TV Show after all. I'll give you a hint: The Twelve Colonies."

Xander looked at him as he worked his brain to figure out what Andrew was going on about. It took a minute for him to work out, which Andrew figured he had as Xander placed his arm on his shoulder and shook his friend in what looked to be an equal mixture of trepidation and excitement. "You built a goddamn Cylon Raider!?"

Andrew chuckled. "I built the shape of a Cylon Raider. The systems are a mix of Jem'Hadar and Wraith tech."

Xander made a face at the mention of Wraith tech being integrated with their technology. "Why Wraith Tech?"

Andrew began his explanation. "Well, their fighter's do have some interesting capabilities; for instance I saw you looking at the cockpit before; I take it you noticed the lack of a canopy? Well Wraith fighters use an opaque energy shield with an integrated HUD when flying. I've adapted that function for the Attack Raider… that's its name by the way. The energy shield and HUD will provide a clear view for the pilot instead of just relying on the HUD; the pilot will be able to see what he's shooting at. I've also adapted the culling beam and storage device for use as a delivery system."

That peaked Xander's attention and Andrew noticed so he continued. "The Raider's got stealth capability. As you know Xan, we've noticed in past engagements that Wraith sensors are able to detect our Hyperdrive emissions… It's something I've been working on fixing, but I haven't had much luck with yet, but anyway, they can't detect our ships in warp or our impulse emissions. From what I've been able to gather, our warp field disrupts subspace while in use making it impossible for their sensors to track us. Utilising an Ancient cloaking device; one Raider can warp behind enemy lines while cloaked, drop and retrieve an insertion team and leave without being detected."

"How fast can she go?" Xander asked as the idea of a fighter with stealth capabilities appealed to him.

"She's rated for warp five for short range stealth insertions. Impulse drive can match the speed of the Wraith fighter's easily."

Xander was in love it already; he couldn't wait for the craft to be deployed. "I saw the micro torpedo launchers and the polaron emitters; what else does it have?"

"The torpedoes are class ten polaron micro torpedoes; they have a variable yield of between fifty and eighty isotons. It can carry over a hundred of them, and the emitters have been modified to fire steady bursts of polaron weapons fire instead of a steady beam. It'll make it easier for combat. She's got a bite to her, Xand."

Xander nodded as he absorbed the information, he liked what he was learning about it.

"Defences?"

"She has the cloaking device and she has an ablative trinium based hull… and that's about it."

"That's it? No shields?" Xander indeed didn't look too pleased to hear that and Andrew could tell.

"No, the Wraith systems, the culling beam and storage device are too big to allow a shield generator… she'll be able to take her hits and still dish it out, Xander. I've made sure of that."

"Then how come she isn't flying yet?" Xander asked a little exasperated; Andrew sighed and let out a breath before he could respond. "Spit it out, Andrew."

Andrew sighed. "It's almost finished. The weapons system's completed; the cloaking system has been fitted and the life support system is up and running and the miniature warp core is fitted and the impulse drive is ready. The only problem I'm having is getting our systems to integrate with the Wraith systems. There not accepting the EPS power distribution and its causing problems with the flow rate to the other systems. I'm making headway with it but its taking time."

Xander digested what he had been told before he continued. "How long until its ready, Andrew?"

"Until I come up with a workaround… as it stands now? Three weeks. Give or take."

Xander groaned. Andrew just looked apologetic before he continued with an excited tone. "But the other project I've been working on is done."

"It is?" Xander asked surprised.

Andrew nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yeah. There are three currently ready with another three almost completed. Allow me to show you the second half of Project Basestar." Andrew turned and moved over towards a console gesturing for Xander to follow him before he accessed his system files and brought up the relevant data on screen. "Capable of operating as a mobile command and control centre and securing any liberated system from the Wraith. She's essentially the delivery method for the attack raiders seeing as they don't have Hyperdrive capability."

Xander looked up and took note of the technical specs of Andrew's second prototype. On screen, Xander observed that the design was similar to what his memories informed him of the original shape. The image displayed showed two saucer sections, each with a diameter of seventeen hundred and seventy metres that were connected together at the central axis of each saucer. As Andrew brought up each section of the image Xander looked over the prototype's technical specifications more thoroughly.

He saw mention of a reactionless drive. "What's a reactionless drive?" He asked his friend.

"A gravitic inertial propulsion engine used to travel at sublight speeds. The Ancients' technology is and was predominantly powered by Zero Point Energy Fields, using these fields project Basestar can achieve speeds of 0.35C." He asked reminding his friend of the Lantean power source. "The drives are the considered to be superior to other sublight engines because they leave no engine emissions that can be detected." He finished.

"Yeah?"

Andrew continued. "Well, a Zero Point Energy Field is essentially a leakage of energy on the quantum scale being translated to our reality." Andrew brought an image of a Lantean power source up on the screen as he continued with his explanation. "The Ancients were able to utilise these energy fields to power their technology…"

"But we know that depending on the power requirements and what they were used for; these power sources usually had a finite supply of power and didn't last long, right?" Xander asked as he remembered an explanation Andrew had given him over seven years ago.

"That's right. The more power that was required, the quicker the power drain on the energy field. Project Basestar utilises six Zero Point batteries for power and two Matter/Anti – Matter Fusion Reactors to supplement that power." Andrew finished.

"Weapons and defences?" Xander asked almost drooling. That amount of power… it was staggering. "I'm guessing Hyperdrive system for FTL?"

"Yes, she uses Hyperdrive to travel FTL. Standard weapons compliment are one hundred and fifty class twelve polaron emitters on both dorsal and ventral saucers with each emitter capable of generating over eight and a half thousand terawatts of firepower. Thanks to the Lantean batteries, they can generate a maximum of nine thousand terawatts if needed, Xander." Andrew stated. And he could already tell that his friend was impressed. "She also has one hundred class twelve torpedo launchers, with fifty on each saucer section and can carry a compliment of six thousand polaron torpedoes each with a variable yield of a hundred and one hundred and eighty isotons."

Andrew used the control console to bring up the image of a shield generator. "She's outfitted with three standard shield generators; each one has a capacity of two hundred and eighty thousand terajoules. Like all of our Starships, she's been outfitted with an ablative trinium based hull that strengthens the Variethiel double hull plating by fifteen percent; plus she's been outfitted with five metre thick armoured neutronium… she's a tank, Xander. And a deadly one."

"What's her fighter and crew compliment?" Xander asked.

"She'll be able to carry two hundred attack raiders when they're completed." Andrew said to him. "We estimated that a Wraith Hive ship carried a compliment of a hundred fighters when we first began engaging their ships given the size of them. And we know that the Wraith have been constructing more ships since we've shown that we're capable of destroying their forces. Her crew compliment is just over a thousand, pilots, warriors. Basestar command staff."

Andrew continued. "When Warren and I told you and Jonathan our idea six years ago, we knew that we were kind'a reaching high…"

"Reaching high!?" Xander breathed out as he looked over the screen. "Andy, when you mentioned this to me and Jono years ago… I didn't think these would be ready this soon. They're massive…" Massive didn't even begin to describe them, Xander quickly thought; they were huge and he already loved them. "I thought that it would've taken longer to construct these…"

"It would've if my teams and I didn't almost pull a truckload of late nights." Andrew replied with a chuckle. But thankfully, a lot of the construction systems are completely automated… it took a lot of the pressure off of us." He finished.

"Damn… you've outdone yourself, man." Xander said with praise. Andrew beamed, but he saw the frown that soon marred his friends' face. A second later, Xander spoke. "You said three weeks for the raider depending on you creating a workaround to the compatibility problem between the EPS systems and the Wraith tech, right? How long would they be ready if you removed the Wraith systems?"

"And put in a canopy and a standard HUD display?" Andrew asked, pre – empting his friend's question. "About a week. Warren and I contemplated doing that at the start of the project, but we wanted to test out the feasibility of the insertion system… and you're gonna ask me to do remove aren't you?"

"Sorry Andrew…" Xander started.

Andrew sighed. "No… it's fine I get it, I'm a victim of my own success with the Basestars. I'll do it and I'll put in a shield generator as well. Give our fighters that little bit extra protection."

"Thanks man…" Xander started as Andrew nodded and closed the files open on his console; he left Xander standing by the console as the scientist moved back over to his research team and gave out instructions to remove the Wraith components from the prototype fighter. Xander saw these two latest projects as getting one step closer to getting home and he was pretty sure that Andrew did as well.

A moment later, Xander beamed out of his friend's facility. 

* * *

_**Five Minutes Later**_

_**Xander's Personal Quarter's**_

Thinking back on the Raider as he lied down on his bed, Xander had to admit that the Fighter would be a massive help to the Fleet, he just wished that it was ready now, but he was willing to wait a week for the promise that project Basestar appeared to be. He was about to rest for a few hours until his internal comm. unit went off.

"**BEEP!**"

He groaned; he knew that he wasn't gonna get some sleep now. Activating his comm. system, he responded. "Harris."

"Sir, this is Second Tulak'tar in Command &amp; Control. We have just received a subspace communique from First Romat'iklan at Athos. He says that his sensors have detected a Wraith fleet heading into the system. ETA, fifteen minutes."

'Damn!' He thought. He knew that the Wraith wouldn't give up the system that easily, but with his ships stuck in dry – dock undergoing repairs that only left Warren's fleet or Jono's to engage the enemy. He decided after only a moment. "Contact First Levinson. His ship is on the way to the frontline at Karra. Inform him to despatch the Twelfth, Thirteenth and Sixteenth attack groups to Athos. I'll be at the C&amp;C momentarily. Harris, out." Xander stated as he switched his comms off and left his quarters. 

* * *

_**Athosian System**_

_**Twenty Minutes Later**_

The battle was already underway above Athos; with many Athosian's in their camp looking up at the night sky once again wondering if what they were witnessing was a sign from the Ancestors; beyond the planet's atmosphere great ships had engaged each other in furious combat, the eighteen Starships left to defend the system against a force of eighty plus Wraith ships. It had once again descended into Hell. And all without the Athosian's

knowledge.

"Sir, the Seventh attack group is taking heavy damage! They've lost two of their ships and their right flank is exposed!" Stated Romat'iklan's Tactical Officer as he targeted an enemy cruiser; he fired the ship's weapons, targeting the enemy vessel with a volley of torpedoes. After three hit the enemy vessel dead on, it exploded in a violent flash of fire and another was targeted.

"**THOOM! THOOM!**"

The ship rocked under fire from a squadron of eight enemy fighters for retaliation of the destroyed cruiser; Romat'iklan ordered the fighter's destroyed as the ship was being hammered, their shields were barely holding thanks to the damage his ship had already sustained. "Sir, shields down to sixteen percent! Enemy fighters coming around for another assault!"

"Target those fighter's; bearing zero five three, mark eight! I want them destroyed!" The First ordered as he grabbed onto his command console. His Tactical Officer targeted the fighter's and fired main weapons; his sensors soon registered the destruction of five of them while the remaining fighters had evaded fire. All around Romat'iklan's ship, Jem'Hadar Starships were tearing through space firing at the enemy. Phaser fire struck cruisers and fighters alike, striking critical and glancing shots on their enemy. Torpedoes struck enemy cruisers amid ships, breaking open the hulls and exposing the Wraith to hard vacuum; they destroyed their engines, targeted the bridge on some of the cruisers; their weapons and their life support systems. They only had twelve ships remaining as the Jem'Hadar valiantly defended the system to the best of their ability and made the Wraith pay for the destruction of their ships.

"Instruct the Ninth attack group to defend the Seventh's right flank. They're taking heavy fire!" Romat'iklan told his Comms. Officer; the warrior nodded as he went about following his orders, but he soon discovered that he couldn't send the message through. "Sir, the Wraith are jamming communications! I can't get through to the Ninth…"

"**THOOM!**"

"SIR! SHIELDS ARE DOWN!" Shouted the warrior at Tactical.

"EVASIVE MANOEVRES!" Everyone on the bridge was rocked as the attack vessel took a shot directly on the ships dorsal plating; a cruiser had taken advantage that the attack on Romat'iklan's ship had finally deprived it of its shields and was now pressing their attack. Sparks flew and consoles exploded from the heavy damage they were under. The First's command console was now a mess of smoking wires and conduits.

"HULL BREACH ON DECK FIVE! MAIN WEAPONS OFFLINE!"

"SIR! THE SEVENTH ATTACK GROUP'S BEEN DESTROYED! THE NINTH IS UNDER HEAVY FIRE…" As the Comms. Officer stated to his First at how dire the situation was; his sensors had registered a subspace distortion forming. "SIR, HYPERSPACE WINDOW FORMING; BEARING ONE FOUR EIGHT MARK ONE NINE… I'M READING… JEM'HADAR IFF's, REINFORCEMENTS APPROACHING!"

Romat'iklan grinned. The day was not yet lost. As ships of the Twelfth, Thirteenth and Sixteenth attack groups tore through the devastation and opened fire on the enemy; the remaining Jem'Hadar, bolstered by the arrival of friendly forces rallied and regrouped before they pushed the Wraith back once more. Romat'iklan's attack ship, being too badly damaged to remain fighting pulled back by behind the ships as he ordered the remaining attack ships in the Fourth attack group, three ships, excluding his own to continue to attack the enemy. 

* * *

_**Athos**_

_**Gate Plateau**_

_**Same time**_

It was night when the Gate Team had emerged from the Stargate. The situation on Atlantis had rapidly deteriorated with the city shield losing power, and the ocean threatening to flood the city and kill everyone there. Dr. Weir had deemed it necessary to use the Stargate to look for more ZPM's for the city and Athos was one of the main addresses chosen by chance. What they didn't know was that there actually was a ZPM production facility there underground and under the control of the Jem'Hadar.

Four SG soldiers had already secured the Gate site next to the MALP as the rest of the team emerged from the event horizon. Major Shepherd and Lt. Ford checked the perimeter when they heard the Gate shut off as Col. Sumner closed in on them. "Anything?"

"No Sir. It's all quiet." Replied Ford as Shepherd kept his eyes peeled through his NVG.

Sumner looked at him for a moment. "Shepherd?"

"No contacts, sir." Sumner nodded; he ordered two soldiers to stay and guard the Gate before he ordered the rest of his team to go on ahead.

Their arrival had not gone unnoticed. There was an Ancient city nearby that was home to a garrison of Jem'Hadar who had set up a subspace listening post there in the city. They were there to protect the Athosian's while the Planet was a key strategic area for the Jem'Hadar Defence Force. The Jem'Hadar routinely patrolled the area around the Stargate in case the Wraith came to Athos through the Gate.

They already knew that the fleet of eighteen Starships patrolling the system were under attack from the Wraith and they knew from prior experience that one of the tactics used by the Wraith was to send in ground forces through the Stargate to attack and cut off any escape. There was a shrouded patrol of Jem'Hadar just beyond the treeline that had seen the Stargate activate and they prepared for the worst; but when the team of humans stepped through the event horizon armed, they were still cautious.

Soon, the humans started to move forward cautiously as the Jem'Hadar carried on observing them. From their movements and tactics, the Jem'Hadar knew that these humans were military trained; noticing how they moved in tight formation. One of the human's had moved close to the treeline, it was the one they observed had been called Shepherd and they watched him move slowly until he and they heard someone running through the trees nearby.

Shepherd stopped and raised his arm up to make the rest of his team hold position. After a few seconds he gestured again to make them continue slowly as he and Lt. Ford moved towards the treeline. As they moved closer, a small figure jumped out of the trees and then stopped at the sight of the soldiers. Ford and Shepherd raised their weapons, surprised by the sudden appearance.

The boy was afraid; he whimpered in terror before another figure wearing a mask burst out of the trees growling and snarling and quickly tackled the other boy to the ground.

Jinto, the first boy looks up at Ford. "Please don't hurt us!" He called out frightened.

As Col. Sumner ran up to join them, the second boy, Wex had taken his mask off and both of them looked at the rest of the soldiers in fear. Just then, an adult male raced out of the trees without realising that he had just past the shrouded Jem'Hadar who were watching the events unfold. "Wait!" The man shouted out.

Ford and Shepherd raised their weapons higher and in the man's direction. The man holds out his hands to the soldiers as he ran toward the boys and stood over them protectively. "Please! They're just playing."

The rest of the soldiers soon approached and gathered around as the man continued to hold out his hands at them before he looked down at the boys. "Everything Ok here, Shepherd?" Sumner asked.

"Yes, Sir. Just a couple of Kids." He replied, lifting his NVG up onto his head. The other soldiers soon lowered their weapons and the man quickly stood up showing the others that he is taller than everyone there.

He held his hands out to the boys and helped them to their feet then he turned to Shepherd, gesturing to himself. "Halling."

"I don't know what that means." Replied Shepherd nonplussed. Sumner exasperatingly told him that it is the man's name.

"Oh. Halling, it's nice to meet you." Shepherd replied.

"Are you here to trade?" Asked Halling as Jinto and Wex clung and hid behind the Athosian.

Shepherd looked at Sumner and then Ford before he decided to say that they are traders. Halling accepted the answer and then turned to his son and Wex. He knelt down in front of them. "I told you both not to play in the forest… especially with the Omens…" Jinto and Wex bow their heads at the chastisement. Shepherd, Sumner and Ford looked at each other as Halling mentioned the Omens. "…I'm just glad you're safe."

The tall Man finished as he touched his son's forehead to his own and then stood, he turned back towards Shepherd. "Teyla will wish to meet with you. Come."

He then led the boys away, expecting them to follow as Sumner called to his men. "Parker, Smitty. Dial Atlantis and let Weir know we've made contact with the indigenous people."

"Yes, Sir." The two soldiers replied at once, Sumner turned to follow with the rest of his team as Halling led them to his village.

The Jem'Hadar split into two patrols. As one remained at the Stargate, observing the humans that stayed behind to guard the ring, the other patrol followed the soldiers from the treeline toward the Athosian Camp. Shepherd then heard Ford ask Sumner what his problem is with him; he dismissed the Colonel's problems against him and walked on unbothered by his CO's concerns. A few moments later, Jinto walked up next to him as Wex joined his friend wearing his mask again.

Jinto spoke. "What was that mask you had on?"

Shepherd took his NVG's off and hands them to the boy. "Helps you to see in the dark. Check it out."

Jinto took them from him and looks through them; he is amazed that he can see everything through them, though his view in them had turned into a greenish tint as the NVG's illuminated the surrounding area. Wex took them off and had a look as well as like his friend, he was amazed as well. He asked if he can have a look through them also and Jinto passes them to his friend; he too is amazed and he asked Shepherd if he can have them.

"No." The soldier replied as he took them back off the boy and put them back on his head. "What's that mask you've got on?" He asks Wex.

"This? Wraith."

Shepherd asked him what a Wraith was and Wex and Jinto just stared at him. Amazed that he didn't know. They soon asked him if he didn't really know and what world did they all come from if they hadn't heard of the Wraith before. Without giving him time to answer, Jinto asked if he and Wex could go there. "Afraid not. I'm from a Galaxy far, far away."

Shepherd then asked Jinto about what Halling meant about the Omens. The boy and Wex looked at him before gesturing upwards toward the night sky; Shepherd followed their gazes and he looked up and saw numerous flashes of white light and streaks shooting across the sky. "… Whoa."

It was safe to say that he was impressed by the lightshow. Col. Sumner and Lt. Ford had asked Halling about the Omens as well and the man spoke looking up at the sky. Sumner and Ford looked up as well. "We do not know what they are. Just that they are there; they first appeared in the skies over eight hours ago then they were gone after five hours had passed. Then they returned recently after three hours. Many of my people believe them to be a sign from the Ancestors. Now, please follow. Teyla is waiting."

Halling walked on as Sumner and Ford kept on watching. Their attention was drawn to a series of five small flashes that they could make out before they blinked out of existence.

"Sir…" Ford spoke.

"I know, Lieutenant. I know." As he and Ford caught up to Halling, Sumner couldn't help but thinking what the hell had they walked into? He knew that those flashes and streaks were not natural phenomena; to him, even at this distance, they looked like explosions and weapons fire. 

* * *

_**Author's Note: -**_

Hello everyone, as promised here's chapter two. If you've read this story before over on TTH, you'd know by now that this has been rewritten. I wasn't happy with the original writing I did the first time. The first time I mentioned the Attack Raider prototype that Andrew had built, I wasn't really happy with how it turned out and there were other factors as well, hopefully this rewrite of it is better.

If you don't know by now I am a fan of the classic BSG series and I wanted to honour that in this way, so project Basestar, as Andrew stated, is exactly what it sounds like: Classic Cylon Basestars with Jem'Hadar and Ancient technology incorporated into the designs. I like the modern designs for the Basestars as well, but I wanted to use the originals. Don't begrudge me...

Peace


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter.3: - ****The New Divide**

"_At my signal, unleash hell."_

Excerpt from Gladiator.

* * *

_**Athosian System**_

_**The Battle**_

"Wraith fighters, bearing one three seven, mark four! They've broken through the Sixteenth's aft flank. They're taking heavy damage!" A warrior said as he saw the sensor data coming in on one of the displays on the bridge. "Three Wraith cruisers, bearing one five seven, mark six! They're…"

"**THOOM!**"

Tural'talak; Romat'iklan's Tactical Officer was cut off as a shot from an enemy cruiser hit the attack ships port Nacelle. The Jem'Hadar First had ordered repair teams to begin bringing the ships weapons systems back online as they hung back while their fellow warriors fought on. It was… humiliating not being able to fight the enemy while all around you, your brothers, your… family were laying down their lives doing their duty.

"**THOOM! THOOM!**"

Romat'iklan's ship rocked again under the glancing impacts of Wraith weapons fire; as his crew worked diligently to get the ship back into the fight. The Wraith certainly weren't making it easy for them. "HULL BREACH, DECK THREE! WARP CORE AND HYPERDRIVE OFFLINE! WEAPONS ARE GONE!"

'Damn it.' The warrior now knew that their situation had gotten even direr as the fight for the system drew on. With no weapons left and their means of escape damaged, the First saw that he had no other choice. "IMPULSE?!"

The First's Helmsman answered. "SIR, IMPULSE STILL ONLINE!"

"**THOOM!**"

Mollified by that at least as his ship was rocked by enemy fire again, Romat'iklan ordered his Helmsman to set course for the enemy. "HELM, COME ABOUT! BEARING ONE FIVE SEVEN MARK ZERO THREE NINE, FULL IMPULSE!"

The Helmsman, stoic in his duty and in the knowledge of what his Commanding officer intended, inputted the commands into his console and immediately as the impulse engines flared and the ship turned on its axis moved towards its inevitable destination, the First turned to the Communications Officer. "Patch in internal communications."

"Yes, Sir." The young Officer of two years of age replied.

As he went about obeying his commander's order, Romat'iklan turned his gaze to all of the officers on the bridge. "I am proud to have served with you all."

"Comms. open, Sir." The Communications Officer said.

Romat'iklan turned towards him and nodded, taking a brief moment to compose himself. "Attention all hand's! Brace for impact…" Looking at the Helmsman, Romat'iklan issued his final order. "… GIVE ME RAMMING SPEED!"

"YES, SIR!" Replied the Helm Officer as he inputted the commands on his console. Romat'iklan grabbed onto the nearest console next to him as he waited for the inevitable.

Burning husks and fiery debris of what were once powerful attack ships, fighters and cruisers filled the void of space within the Athosian system as Romat'iklan's ship moved towards it targets with one final purpose. As the last remnants of the Jem'Hadar and Wraith fleets continued to destroy each other for control of the system; the three Wraith cruisers that had been targeting the lead vessel of the Fourth attack group moved to intercept the Jem'Hadar ship. They fired their weapons, attempting to destroy the vessel that they knew was intending to ram one of their ships and yet, each shot they fired had either missed or glanced against the hull of the vessel. They poured on their firing as their sensors showed the attack ship was trying to avoid their weapons while speeding ever closer.

"Distance to target?" Romat'iklan asked as he saw the Wraith cruisers trying to blast his ship through his head mounted display unit, he grinned at the futility of their action even as a few of their shots had hit.

"Distance… three hundred kilometres, Sir!" The Helm Officer replied as he monitored his navigational sensors. Like everyone else on board the ship, he too accepted what was about to occur.

"**THOOM!**"

Another hit. And still they sped on. The Helmsman spoke as the burning vessel neared the enemy that they were only two hundred and fifty kilometres from their target even as the Wraith ships were trying to move away from them. "Two hundred kilometres to target…"

"**THOOM! THOOM! THOOM!**"

Another hit and the ship rocked under the impact. On the bridge, panels and conduits exploded, the Tactical and Communications Officers were killed when their consoles blew, the force of the explosions throwing them back forcefully that they landed in twisted heaps. It was evident that their necks had been broken from the impacts. Romat'iklan was sent flying towards the Helm, he caught the console barely as he righted himself and stood.

The Helmsman looked towards his Commander and told him that they were a hundred kilometres away from the enemy, and then fifty, then twenty until…

"Collision in five….Four….Three….Two…." Replied the Helm Officer, as he read out the information on his Sensor display.

Romat'Iklan crowed out before the end. "VICTORY IS LI – – –"

Romat'iklan's attack ship collided with the lead Wraith cruiser in a massive explosion, their lives given in the defence of Athos and its inhabitants.

The two accompanying cruisers had tried to move out of way of the explosion, but even they were too late. The resulting explosion was big enough to catch them as well. The cruisers were sent spiralling out of control as their engines were damaged in the explosion and their hulls were caught fire. Hull breaches in various sections had exposed the crews to hard vacuum. The damage done was extensive and there wasn't enough time to seal the emergency bulkheads in time and within five seconds, all Wraith on board both vessels had perished.

* * *

_**Tritana Prime**_

_**Jem'Hadar Pegasus Defence Force Command and Control**_

_**Same Time**_

Xander had been watching the on – going battle for the last twenty minutes as the status of the battle had been relayed to the Tritana C&amp;C via the subspace beacons within the system. He had seen the entire battle play out as his forces and the Wraith engaged each other for the second time in the Athosian System. When he saw the signal for Romat'iklan's attack ship indicate that the First had set a collision course towards three enemy cruisers, he knew what the First's plan was.

Kamikaze. Needless to say, the former human did not approve of the tactic, but he knew that Romat'iklan's ship must've been heavily damaged to fight back or retreat. It was a matter of contention to him; from his memories of the Jem'Hadar warrior he had become on Halloween eight years ago, he knew that all Jem'Hadar were bred with a religious fervour towards the Founders.

The genetically engineered warriors of the Dominion had been created to believe and fight thinking that the Changelings were indeed gods, and were taught to achieve victory for the Founders by any means necessary.

It was when they had begun creating and training their army that Xander and the others had talked about what they had remembered about their Jem'Hadar personas. The four knew that their personas would've done everything necessary for their… _god's _to achieve victory. And that included kamikaze runs.

Xander remembered Romat'iklan; he had fought with him at the battle for the Hoffan sector when his Battleship and Romat'iklan's attack ship had joined to take on a Hive ship. The warrior's actions at the battle had shown him to be a capable warrior and afterwards, when the battle was over, Xander had met and rewarded Romat'iklan for his actions during the battle by promoting him to First and giving him command of the Fourth attack group.

And now, he was gone and Xander mourned the loss of another warrior.

The Jem'Hadar were outnumbered almost three to one when the reinforcements had arrived and while they had been putting up a good fight, there were just too many Wraith ships and Xander didn't want to watch any more of his ships being destroyed and his soldiers being killed.

Nine attack ships were now nothing more than pieces of debris as their subspace signals winked out of existence and the remains of Jem'Hadar craft drifted through space and once again Xander had more reason to hate the Wraith than he already did. Watching the battle as it continued, he saw that the Wraith were pushing his forces towards Athos; wracking his brain for a possible answer as to why they would be doing that, the former human could only think of one thing that the Wraith wanted apart from reclaiming their… livestock and territory and that was the listening post.

He and the others knew that if the Wraith had ever captured one of their listening posts then they could break and trace the encrypted subspace carrier signal frequency they use to relay their Intel all the way back to Tritana.

And that would be all kinds of bad.

Then again, he wondered, did the Wraith actually know that there was a listening post on Athos? Was the reason for… no! He quickly clamped down on that train of thought, the absurdity of the notion making itself known to him. The Wraith had committed over two hundred ships to the battle in the system the first time. He and his forces had prior warning that there was a Wraith fleet heading towards the Athosian sector when the listening post had intercepted Wraith subspace communications two days previously and after the destruction of over fifty – nine percent of the enemy ships, including the two Hives and the majority of their cruisers during the battle they had retreated.

Xander knew from his ingrained knowledge and instincts from the Jem'Hadar persona he had become on Halloween eight years ago; a First called Ikat'ika; a soldier who ran an Dominion Internment Camp in the Gamma Quadrant that the Wraith weren't done with that system yet.

Xander could remember that night when the spell changed him and his friends into four soldiers of the Dominion, who suddenly found themselves on twentieth century Earth. He closed his eyes and shuddered. That night had not been fun. Neither had the aftermath.

His concentration on what happened years ago was suddenly broken when his Second spoke. "Commander, enemy ships have pushed our forces toward the planet."

Xander looked up at the display and glared hatefully at the display. His ships had all but been destroyed and only a few remained that were still valiantly fighting, but he knew a lost cause now when he saw one. Damned fucking Wraith… Athos was lost. "Order all remaining ships to retreat. They are to head to Tritana to regroup and undergo repairs!"

"Yes, Sir!" Tulak'tar replied; the Second went about relaying the order to the Starships at Athos, but he couldn't get through, the Wraith jamming field as it blanketed the entire system. Xander was becoming angry as he saw the remainder of his forces being destroyed.

He rounded on the Second. "WELL!?"

"I cannot raise the ships at Athos, Commander! The Wraith are jamming communications with a rotating EM pulse….I can't get through." Tulak'tar said sombrely.

'Fuck!' Xander thought. Tulak'tar watched as First Harris grimaced as he turned back towards the display, Xander's body was shaking with rage as he watched the final Jem'Hadar signal winked out on the display. He wanted to scream. He wanted to rage at them. Xander wanted to tear them apart and visit upon this enemy he has been fighting for the last eight years all the hate that they had bred inside of him and burn them all.

And on the many lives lost today at the hands of the Wraith, Xander promised that he would make them pay. He promised that he would unleash hell.

Tulak'tar spoke when the display saw what the Wraith was doing next. "Commander, the Wraith…"

Xander raised his hand to silence the officer; he knew what he was going to be told.

* * *

_**Athosian Settlement**_

_**Same Time**_

Halling had led the Atlantis team into the settlement and had made for one of the main tents; he turned towards Sumner and the others and gestured to them to wait a moment as the tall man called out. "It is Halling. I bring men from away."

He said as a woman's voice called out from inside the tent. "Enter."

He walked in and held the flap aside so that Col. Sumner and the others could enter. The woman who spoke stood and turned to look at them, she knew that there was something odd about them as she looked at their uniforms and weapons. She knew they were soldiers, but she didn't recognise their design or the strange looking emblems on their clothing. Halling had whispered in her ear and had told her thee strangers wished to trade and as she looked towards Shepherd, who had an easy going look about him, Teyla was intrigued by him.

"I am Teyla Emmagan, daughter of Tagan." She said as she nodded her head slightly.

"Colonel Marshall Sumner, Major Shepherd and Lieutenant Ford. We have…" Sumner trailed off as everyone in the tent suddenly heard screaming coming from outside as everyone heard a shrilling noise building up, it put everyone on alert. Teyla and Halling startled, as did the soldiers. The rest of the Athosian's inside the tent all startled and scrambled up and out of the tent running as suddenly there was a flash of light outside followed by an explosion and then more screaming followed by gunfire.

"What the hell?!" Sumner and the others ran outside and watched as three unknown craft with pointed tips flew over the settlement overhead firing on the settlement; it was chaos, it was pandemonium everywhere as weapons fire from the unknown craft rained down upon the Athosian's. Impacting the ground were there was a couple of people that were sent flying from the impact of numerous volleys, Shepherd, Ford and Sumner raced over to check on them and luckily enough they were alive, stunned but alive.

"FORD, GET THESE PEOPLE OUT OF HERE! SHEPHERD YOU'RE WITH ME!" Sumner shouted as Ford took charge of the stunned villagers and helped them stand and ran off into the forest; more Atlantis soldiers were running up to Shepherd and Sumner's position as more and more of the unknown craft appeared overhead.

Sumner's radio activated. _"COLONEL SUMNER, THIS IS PARKER! THE STARGATE'S JUST ACTIVATED! WE'VE GOT UNKNOWN CRAFT COMING THROUGH! COLONEL?! COLONEL SUMNER?! RESPOND! THREE BANDITS HEADED YOUR WAY! COLONEL SUMNER – –"_

Sumner watched as a couple of the craft flew overhead of a group of Athosian's that were running away from them, the Wraith fighter emitted it's culling beam as it neared the runners and when it was overhead, the villagers were overrun by the beam and disappeared. The Wraith fighter drew ever closer to Sumner and Shepherd's position, its beam still activated and as it was almost upon them they were pushed to the side by Teyla and the beam sailed past them.

"WHAT ARE THEY!?" Shepherd had shouted at Teyla, she looked at him as they all stood and began running towards a group of Atlantis soldiers that had begun firing on the unknown enemy craft.

"THEY ARE WRAITH! WE MUST GET AWAY FROM HERE!" Teyla led them past the soldiers that were firing on the approaching Wraith fighters; she glanced back and watched as the Atlantis soldiers fought to save her people and themselves.

A fighter had activated its culling beam and was nearing the soldiers firing position, they kept firing as it neared, but they could tell that their weapons weren't having much of an effect and just as the beam was almost upon them, there was a rustling sound coming from the trees near the soldiers and she stopped and drew Sumner's and Shepherd's attention.

"COLONEL, MAJOR! LOOK."

The two stopped and turned as one, they saw six shimmering alien figures appear out of the treeline and take up a firing position beside the Atlantis soldiers. Sumner and Shepherd both startled and raised their weapons at them, initially thinking that these were the Wraith that Teyla was talking about, but before the two soldiers took action to protect their people, the unknown warriors opened fire at the Wraith fighters.

Teyla looked on as the soldiers' weapons opened fire; they were just like they were described to her by their trading partners, tall with grey skinned features and wearing black and dark greying uniforms. She knew that these were _them_. She watched as their weapons had hit and damaged the fighter more effectively than the Atlantis soldiers P90's did, the fighter's culling beam ventral emitter was hit by one of the alien weapons making it cut out after a few well – placed shots.

The Dart flew overhead trailing smoke and fire as the weapons fire from the Jem'Hadar polaron rifles and the Atlantis soldiers P90's continued pelting the fighter until its exhaust was hit and the Dart exploded raining down debris over a nearby area.

Teyla was amazed; these were the beings that had been waging war against the Wraith and had been saving the humans of this Galaxy. These were the beings that had been making her hope.

The Atlantis soldiers turned and looked at the unknown aliens that had joined them firing on the enemy fighter. One of the soldiers, Sergeant Bates jumped back and raised his weapon at one of the aliens. Sumner, Teyla and Shepherd ran back towards the two groups before something even worse happened.

"IDENTIFY YOURSELVES!" Bates shouted at the alien soldier, the soldier turned towards Bates his weapon pointed at Bates which made him flinch slightly but the soldier held his nerve and tightened his grip on his weapon.

"Lower your weapon, human. We mean you no harm." The warrior said as he slowly replied with Bates' order, however Bates didn't reciprocate. As he still held his weapon towards the unknown warrior, Sumner spoke.

"Bates, lower your weapon." Bates registered his CO's order yet he still held P90 up at the warrior, thinking that the alien was a threat to him and the Atlantis team while everything around them went to hell in a hand basket.

Sumner ordered Bates again. "Bates, lower your weapon. That's an order, Sergeant!"

Sumner's order finally registered and begrudgingly he lowered the weapon as the Colonel turned his gaze to the warriors. The Colonel made a gesture to himself and then to Shepherd as he addressed the being. "I am Colonel Marshall Sumner, United States Marine Corps. Major Shepherd, Air Force. Earth. Who are you?"

The alien turned to look at Sumner; he assumed that the rank of Colonel was higher than the rank he had called Bates. "I am Third Omak'arai, Squad Commander, Second Platoon, Jem'Hadar Defence Force. What are you doing here on this planet?"

Sumner was about to answer when a Dart had made their position and began firing on them, realising that now was not the time for talking, Jem'Hadar and human alike made a run for it while a few of the Atlantis soldiers and Jem'Hadar provided covering fire. They all ran for the treeline, using the forest as cover from the alien looking Dart fighters; Shepherd saw Jinto and Wex cowering near a tree when they approached. "Major Shepherd!"

"Jinto, Where's your Father?"

The Boy looked saddened and Shepherd understood that something bad had happened.

Teyla spoke. "Jinto, was he taken?"

The Boys were crying now as Halling's son nodded; Teyla looked saddened by the news but she asked them if they had seen anyone else taken. They had told her that her friend Toran was taken with Halling and a few others but she quickly resolved herself.

"We cannot stay here. We must hurry, the Wraith are after us more than they are here for the Humans." Jinto and Wex startled when they heard Omak'arai talking, they had looked up at him and they were scared at having never seen anything like him before. He looked towards Teyla and Major Shepherd, but they reassured the boys that they meant no harm to them. "We have a Base of Operations in the old city, it is well defended. Come."

Omak'arai and the rest of the Jem'Hadar took the lead while Teyla looked shocked at the news that the aliens were in the old city. The Athosian's had firmly believed that the Wraith would come if anyone had ever gone there; evidently, it appeared that their belief was true after all.

Sumner and Shepherd looked at the rest of the Atlantis soldiers as they followed the Jem'Hadar, not yet trusting the aliens but giving them the benefit of the doubt for now, they followed taking the boys with them.

"Sir, should we follow them? Shouldn't we try to contact Atlantis?" Bates asked as he approached Sumner. He didn't trust the aliens and he showed his distrust which Sumner had picked up on, and while Sumner wasn't sure of them either, he decided to err on the side of caution considering their current circumstances. He looked up as he saw three more Darts flying overhead firing their weapons and activating their culling beams.

"It looks like we don't have a choice, Sergeant. We need answers and they have them. As for Atlantis, we'll have to wait until the Gate closes and we can dial." Bates nodded as he and the rest of the soldiers followed them, the Col. turned to Shepherd.

"Shepherd, radio Smitty and Parker. Tell them to head for the treelines; we'll meet up as we head to the city these Jem'Hadar are talking about."

"Yes, Sir." Shepherd replied as he followed Sumner's order.

Omak'arai waited for the Colonel as he approached the alien. "Colonel, we must go now. Our Base isn't far but I do not want to be out here for long while the Wraith are attacking."

Sumner nodded and he gestured for Omak'Arai to lead on, the alien briskly nodded and led him off in the direction his warriors had gone.

They had quickly caught up with the others, Shepherd told Sumner that he had radioed Parker and Smitty, but couldn't get a response and he looked grim from the news. Just what had they stepped into here? Sumner asked himself as he and the others walked on.

Fifteen minutes had passed as they kept walking on towards the old city, the Jem'Hadar still in the lead followed by Shepherd, Sumner and Teyla and the two boys while Bates and the rest took up the rear. The Darts were still overhead firing and culling the Athosian's. Teyla was saddened as her people were being taken, wanting to fight and save them, but she also wanted to know who these Jem'Hadar were and if they would help her save her people.

"We're almost there now, just a few more metres." Said Omak'Arai as he addressed Teyla and the others, she looked at him and noticed as he looked at her back, a questioning look in his eyes as he watched the woman, but Teyla turned away and focused on walking.

Eventually they had reached a large clearing and the city lay beyond, the Darts were flying overhead in what appeared to be a search pattern for something, Sumner and Shepherd noticed this and realised that the Wraith might be searching for stragglers or this base the Jem'Hadar mentioned.

Suddenly, Bates fired his P90, garnering the attention of the others, he looked spooked and transfixed as he frantically looked behind him.

"Bates!" Shouted Sumner as he, Omak'Arai and Teyla ran towards him.

"They're everywhere, Sir!" Teyla and Omak'Arai realised what was happening now as the Sergeant fired his weapon once more. Omak'Arai and Teyla approach the Sergeant; the Jem'Hadar forces the P90 out of Bates' hands, making the Atlantis soldiers raise their weapons at him.

"They are not there, Human. The Wraith can make you see things that are not there. Firing your weapon will alert them to our position."

Teyla looked at him and nodded. "Omak'arai is telling the truth. Do not trust your eyes."

The Jem'Hadar hands the P90 back to Bates and turns back towards Sumner. "Tell your men, not to fire. The Wraith…"

He was cut off as everyone heard the shrilling sound of Darts approaching; Sumner and Omak'arai looked up and saw five Darts heading their way. "… MOVE!" He shouted as he and the others raced from the forest and ran to the city. Omak'Arai reached for his communicator on his belt.

"This is Third Omak'Arai, Second Platoon. Wraith fighters approaching! Arm planetary defence batteries and raise the city shield. I am bringing in survivors from the human encampment." Without waiting for a response, Omak'arai placed his communicator back into the pouch he got it from and kept running, the five Darts had gotten closer and were firing on them now; Sumner had ordered Shepherd to get Teyla and the boys to the city while he and the rest provided defensive fire. They were about to open fire at the Darts when a bright light from one of the towers of the city had lit up in the distance and fired a large pulse of energy at the Darts.

The pulse shot straight for a Dart and hit, making the craft explode, the remaining Darts broke off their run towards the humans and quickly regrouped, but this time they headed towards the city defence batteries now as they opened fire targeting them.

"KEEP MOVING!" Sumner shouted as he and the rest caught up with Shepherd and the others however one of the Darts broke off and made another run at the humans and Jem'Hadar with its culling beam activated. The Dart flew as fast it could, dodging the weapons batteries fire as it neared the running group. Shepherd and Teyla looked back as they saw the Dart getting nearer and nearer.

"COLONEL!" Shepherd shouted as he stopped and turned, he saw the Dart fly overhead and cull Bates and the Atlantis soldiers and some of the Jem'Hadar. Sumner pushed Omak'arai out of the way of the beam causing the warrior to fall off to side and be missed by the beam, but Shepherd and the others watched as Sumner was taken. The Dart then flew off, not wanting to be destroyed while it carried its precious cargo back to the Gate. The other Darts had been destroyed by the batteries, but they had caught the attention of the rest of the Wraith fleet in orbit and everyone watched as three Wraith cruisers descended into the Atmosphere.

"_COLONEL SUMNER, MAJOR SHEPHERD, THIS IS LIEUTENANT FORD, COME IN! COLONEL? MAJOR? RESPOND!"_

"FORD, WHERE ARE YOU?!" Shepherd spoke into his radio as Omak'arai and Teyla approached him.

"_Major, I managed to meet up with a few Athosian survivors. We're headed to the Gate. It's too hot here, Sir, recommend we dial Atlantis and head back." _Ford replied.

Shepherd looked back at the descending cruisers; they had started firing upon the city shield. The defence batteries returned fire as more and more cruisers descended and added their fire to the others, there was even weapons fire coming directly from space and Omak'arai knew that the shield couldn't withstand that type of punishment for long. Unlike the Ancient shield of Atlantis, the city shield systems in the old city was too heavily damaged from the Ancients war with the Wraith ten thousand years ago and it couldn't be repaired along with most of the Ancient systems there.

The Jem'Hadar had used their technology to supplement the damaged systems and had installed a Jem'Hadar defence shield for protection. It was strong enough to provide moderate protection from weapons fire, but it couldn't withstand the punishment it was under for long. "Major, I agree with your Lieutenant. They must leave."

Shepherd looked at him before he responded. "Ford…"

"_Major, there's a Bandit approaching the Gate. It's activating!"_ Shepherd took a chance that that Dart was the one that had taken Sumner and the others. His mind made up, he told Ford to let the Dart through and to take note of the Gate address. He had then told Ford that Sumner and Bates were taken by the Wraith.

Teyla, Jinto and Wex watched as the city shield began sputtering and fading, Omak'arai knew that it wouldn't hold for long. "You need to go now; the shield isn't going to hold much longer."

"What about you?" Teyla asked the warrior; Omak'Arai looked at her and spoke.

"We are evacuating the base then destroying it. This was a listening post for our forces in the sector. There is classified intelligence here that the Wraith must not acquire."

Teyla spoke again. The news that these Jem'Hadar having been here on Athos for so long without them knowing had perplexed her mind. "How long have you been here? We would have noticed if you arrived using the Ring of the Ancestors."

Omak'Arai told her. "We didn't come through the ring. We have been here for seven years. Your people's superstition that the Wraith would come if they ever ventured to the city allowed us to set up our base here without you finding out about us. It was our protection as well as yours until now."

Shepherd picked up on the implication Omak'arai was getting at. "You have a spaceship nearby, don't you?" Omak'Arai nodded.

Ford's voice spoke Shepherd's radio again._ "Major Shepherd, Bandit's gone through the Gate, it's deactivated."_

"Did you get the address?" He asked as he held his Radio.

"_Yes, Sir."_

"Then dial Atlantis and tell them we're coming in."

"_Yes, Sir."_ Ford's voice cut off over the radio as the Lieutenant complied the Major's order. Shepherd turned back to the shield and saw that it had finally collapsed. Omak'arai was barking orders into his communicator, Shepherd heard him telling whoever he was speaking to delete their system files and to implement the 'Incursion Protocols.'

"You must go now." The Jem'Hadar stated as he looked back at Shepherd and the Athosian's. "You have to get them to safety."

Shepherd nodded as he looked back towards them, he glanced up at the cruisers as they kept firing at the city, many of the spires and towers had been destroyed and most of the buildings had been reduced to rubble, Wex and Jinto held onto Teyla as they watched the destruction of the old city, the last bastion of Ancient knowledge on Athos was soon to be no more.

There were more Wraith Darts flying overhead as the cruisers continued their assault, Shepherd turned to Omak'arai. "We won't make it with those fighters in the air. Can you help us get back to the Stargate?"

Omak'arai looked at Shepherd and after a brief moment he nodded. He activated his communicator and contacted the ship they had nearby the old city.

"This is Third Omak'arai of the Second Platoon. Lock on to the four human life signs near my position and beam them to the Stargate's co – ordinates. Then beam me aboard. Athos has been taken by the enemy." He spoke.

"_Acknowledged. Standby." _A voice replied through Omak'arai's radio.

Shepherd and Teyla thanked him as they and the two boys soon disappeared from sight a second later. Shepherd had a look of disbelief on his face as he felt himself being transported away; Teyla, Jinto and Wex had similar looks on their faces before they too disappeared. Omak'arai watched as the humans disappeared and then he too was transported aboard the attack ship the Jem'Hadar had hidden away inside an underground docking bay.

He appeared inside the attack ships transporter room and spoke to one of the warriors there. "Have the Incursion Protocols been implemented?"

"Yes, Sir." Omak'arai nodded as he stepped off the transporter pad; he exited the room and made his way to the bridge. Soon, the attack ship took off from the underground bay and shot into the sky avoiding weapons fire from the Wraith cruisers and Darts. The crew aboard the ship saw the debris of the attack ships that had valiantly defended the system.

Soon after having escaped from the Wraith ships they had entered Hyperspace and left the sector on course to Tritana.

* * *

_**Athos**_

_**Stargate Plateau**_

_**A Second Later**_

As Ford had finished dialling the Gate, Shepherd, Teyla and the two boys had reappeared just near the dialling device. Ford turned at the sound of Shepherds voice calling out to him. "Ford, report."

"Major, I've just sent through our IDC and radioed Atlantis. I sent the Athosian's through first. I was waiting for you. How'd…"

Shepherd cut him off as Teyla and the boys ran up to the Gate. "I'll tell you later, we need to go now."

As he finished, there was a huge explosion just gone off in the distance illuminating the night sky in an orange and yellow hue of colour. A big mushroom cloud quickly rose up and spread out across the sky; suddenly the ground had started to shake and cracks formed on the plateau, many more explosions went off as more and more clouds rose up. Shepherd and Ford couldn't take the chance.

"GET THROUGH THE GATE!" Teyla and the boys ran through first followed by Ford, Shepherd watched and waited until they were gone. He held onto the Stargate a moment as the ground around the DHD cracked and collapsed taking the device with it. The ground shook more and more and Shepherd found it difficult to keep his balance. Not wanting to take any chances, he dove through the Gate with one thing on his mind.

He knew that whatever was happening to the planet was the cause of the Jem'Hadar. Probably the last step of their 'Incursion Protocols'. He just didn't think that they would go as far as blowing up the planet.

* * *

_**Atlantis**_

_**Gate Room**_

_**Seconds Later**_

"Raise the Shield!" Dr. Weir's voice called out as she saw the diving figure of Major Shepherd come through the Gate.

Shepherd landed hard on the floor and groaned before he quickly stood and shouted. "CLOSE THE GATE, NOW!"

"Do it!" Elizabeth ordered.

The Gate shook as the vortex glowed brightly for a brief moment, Shepherd feared that the destruction of the planet was being translated through the Stargate, but luckily enough Grodin had shut down the Gate before the potential damage could over power the Gates Shield.

"Major Shepherd, who are all these people?" Weir's voice cuts through his disorientation, the Major notices the base is shaking and that Teyla and the other Athosian's are huddled around each other and holding each other for support.

"Survivors from the settlement we were at. We were attacked. Sumner and some of our men were taken, along with a few others. What's going on?" He asked as he made his way over to Jinto and Teyla and quickly asked if they were alright.

They quickly nodded at him and he turned back towards Weir. "Major, we are in no condition to help anyone right now."

"What the hell is going on here?" Shepherd asked her.

"We are about to abandon the city." He looked at her as the shaking in Atlantis had gotten worse.

"Well going back there is not an option."

"Why not?" Weir asked him.

"Because Dr. there isn't anything to go back to. Athos has been destroyed."

* * *

_**Author's Note: -**_

Surprise! I was trying to post Chapter two up on the site before and I couldn't sign in, so I decided to rewrite chapter three and correct some grammar on it and voila, another chapter posted. Enjoy. By the by, I should've mentioned this in the last post, but Tritana Prime is my OC. There was no planet in Atlantis by that name. TTFN

Peace


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter.4: - ****Rescue – Part.1.**

_Sumner: - Go to hell._

_Wraith: - Earth first._

Excerpt from Stargate Atlantis 1X02 – Rising

* * *

_**Omak'Arai's Attack Ship**_

_**En route to Tritana Prime**_

_**Seconds before Athos's Destruction**_

Third Omak'arai stood to attention as he received a response and opened the channel from Commander Harris at Tritana Prime. As soon as his ship had left the Athosian system, Omak'arai had sent a subspace message to Tritana C&amp;C and had reported on what occurred on the planet's surface. "… The Wraith had begun attacking the Athosian settlement as soon as they had defeated our forces…"

He was cut off when Xander had raised his hand to silence his subordinate. He knew what had happened, he didn't need reminding. "I'm well aware of what happened to our forces, Third. Continue."

The warrior had seen the grim look Xander expressed as he thought back to the destruction he had seen in the C&amp;C, Omak'arai continued to recant what had happened during the Wraith attack. "We were observing a group of Human soldiers that had arrived through the Ring prior to the attack; First Talak'zilzak had ordered our platoon to split into two to continue surveillance. When the human soldiers split into two groups, I was instructed to follow a group of them to the Athosian encampment when an Athosian offered to take them to their leader. First Talak'zilzak remained at the Stargate and continued to observe the humans that had been instructed to stand guard at the gate."

As Omak told one of the four Founders of the Jem'Hadar race his report, Xander listened as his subordinate described how the human soldiers had defended the Athosian's and themselves when the Wraith attacked, he had really been surprised when Janus had told him that human's from Earth were going to be the help that he and the others were waiting for. Could Earth have advanced that far in the eight years that he and his friends had been gone? Did Earth have access to Starships of their own design? And allies? Had they made an enemy of an alien species in the Milky Way? These were the questions that ran through Xander's head when he was informed that they had arrived. But more importantly, he asked himself if they would actually be willing to help him and his people in their war against the Wraith.

He continued to listen to Omak'arai as he continued with his report. "… and when Colonel Sumner pushed me out of the way of the culling beam and was taken in my place along with the rest of my men, myself, Major Shepard and the three Athosian's observed as three Wraith cruisers descended into the atmosphere and fired on the old city. It was at that moment that I had ordered the Incursion Protocol's to be implemented, Sir." Omak'arai finished as he observed Xander digest the information.

It was a few moments later that Xander spoke. "And the protocols were followed exactly? The facility and the Listening Post were destroyed? The intel is secure?"

"Yes, Sir."

Xander nodded. While he regretted the destruction of the Athosian planet, he knew that by overloading the reactor core of the ZPM production facility would cause a chain reaction that could potentially destroy Athos. He knew now that the planet was now nothing more than a cloud of space dust and debris, but at least the Wraith fleet was caught in the explosion and destroyed as well, but it was small consolidation considering the lives of many Athosians and Jem'Hadar that didn't escape the planet's destruction.

The subspace beacons in the system had registered the destruction of the enemy fleet and Xander had a feral grin as he watched the sensor readings wink out of existence. Seeing the enemy get wiped out gave him a happy.

Now, he had to find his abducted Jem'Hadar, think of a way to get his people back from the Wraith and rescue some human's as well. "Third, didn't this human Major say that he had a Lieutenant observe the symbols the Wraith fighter activated on the Stargate before escaping?"

Omak'arai nodded as he repeated that section of his report to his Commander. Harris grinned. He had an address, now he needed Atlantis. 'Perhaps it's time for me to meet the new neighbours.'

"Omak'arai, I'm promoting you to Second. Report to the C&amp;C when you arrive at Tritana; we're getting our people back."

"Yes, Sir." The newly promoted Jem'Hadar warrior grinned on the monitor; Xander nodded at him and then cut the communication, he had some planning to do and a fleet to put together.

'Warren should be on his way back shortly…'

* * *

_**Atlantis**_

_**The Gate room**_

_**A Few Seconds after Shepard's Return**_

"Major, the shield is about to fail and the ocean is about to come crashing in on us. Do you have another place that we can go to?" Dr. Weir asked as she looked at the Air Force Major and then towards the Athosian's; Shepard turned towards Teyla and Jinto, an idea forming. Now if he was quick enough…

"Teyla, you know any planet that we can gate to?" Shepard quickly asked.

The Athosian woman looked up at him as he made his way over to her. She passed Jinto off to another Athosian as Shepard neared her. "Yes, I know of many worlds that we can gate to."

Shepard helped her up and as the city began shaking more violently, they stumbled briefly before Shepard righted them both and hurried her over to the stairs leading to the control room. "Major! Who is she?"

Instead of Shepard answering, Teyla spoke. "I am Teyla Emmagan, daughter of Tagan. I speak for the Athosian's."

"She's pleased to meet you." Shepard replied; just as the two were about to climb the steps, the shaking became more violent and the two of them and Dr. Weir stumbled and hit the floor, Shepard and Teyla braced themselves against the steps as Weir held herself close to the floor.

The entire city shook harder as an all too brief flash of light could be seen through the tinted windows of the Gate room's tower the city's shield had finally collapsed. Everyone feared the worst. From the Athosian's who had just escaped from one dire situation only to seemingly walk into another to the Atlantis personnel who wanted to leave, but were now unable to do so.

"The shield's gone!" McKay shouted as another jolt shook the city hard, everyone tried to hold onto something… anything to steady themselves as the city continued to shake violently causing boxes and crates to fall and crash around.

"I'm dialling an address." Grodin shouts out as he turned and moved toward the Atlantis DHD, but Weir immediately told him to wait as did Rodney when they and then everyone felt the city beginning to move.

The Ancient city began to pick up speed as it rose from the depths of the ocean, everyone, both Atlantis personnel and Athosian refugee dared not move as they waited to see if they would live through the next tense few moments. Shortly, the city then broke through the surface, its towers first followed by the rest of the city. Sunlight poured in through the windows of the control tower, bathing the room and the people in light as the city settled into its new position on the surface.

The internal power comes back on as the lights and sconces within the Gate Room and the rest of the city light up. Shepard, Teyla and Dr. Weir all stand followed by everyone else, relief on all of their faces that they have all made it through the potential catastrophe that could've been.

With the sunlight coming through the windows, Weir and the others walk to the nearest one and look out in awe over the city. The sight they saw was breath – taking… Atlantis, the greatest bastion of an advanced civilisation, had risen to once again bring hope to the people of the Pegasus Galaxy.

Shortly, after everyone had quickly gotten used to their new situation, both the SGA people and the Athosian's had started to organise the Gate room. Ford had quickly gotten everyone moving while Dr's McKay, Weir and Major Shepard where convening upstairs in the control room. "OK, the last ZPM is completely depleted, but we've still got limited power. Atlantis must have redundancy back – up generators. Enough to provide power to life support and some systems, which are working by the way and the planet's atmosphere's breathable, but the generators are not going to be holding back an entire ocean anytime soon." McKay stated as he began checking the Atlantis and the Laptops to see what systems where accessible.

Elizabeth spoke as she stood near Shepard. "Can our Naquadah Generators supply enough power to the shield for defensive purposes?"

Shepard looked at McKay, looking for a positive answer. The Major's mind was still playing over what had happened back on Athos and he was eager to get his people back from what appeared to be a fearsome enemy, but his mind also considered the Jem'Hadar he had met on the planet as well. Where they a possible ally or another enemy to contend with as well as the Wraith? And why did that name sound familiar?

He and Ford hadn't even debriefed Weir about what had happened back on Athos yet and given what they had stepped into when coming to this Galaxy; he knew that they needed help and every advantage they could get. But in response to Weir, Rodney replied to her question and dashed Shepherd's hopes and hers in the process. "Not even close."

"On the surface without a shield? We're target practice. Especially with what happened back on Athos." The Major said as he brought attention to the fact that some of their people had been abducted. Rodney regarded Shepard with sarcasm, as if he wasn't aware of that little fact.

Weir looked at him as she wanted him to debrief her on what happened on the Planet. "What did happen, Major?"

"We were attacked by a hostile alien race the indigenous population call the Wraith. Colonel Sumner and Sergeant Bates were taken along with some of the Athosian's and… others." He replied as he began his report while McKay carried on checking the computers.

He looked up and glanced at the Major. "Others? What others?"

"Well as soon as the Wraith started attacking, we defended ourselves as best we could. The Wraith had some kind of fighter; it looked like a Dart, but definitely deadly. One of them had made our position and was coming in for an attack run when a group of alien soldiers appeared from the forest and opened fire on the… Dart alongside Sergeant Bates and his

Marines."

By now McKay and Weir looked at Shepard, nervous at what they had just been told. "What did they call themselves, Major?" She asked, filled with curiosity. She did not like the fact that she and her people had apparently been thrusted into a conflict between two alien races.

"They called themselves the Jem'Hadar." He said.

"What!?" McKay shouted startled as he dropped the Laptop he was holding in his hands; luckily it didn't break as it landed flat on the console. Looking up at the Major, he spoke with a raised voice. "What was that?"

"He said they called themselves Jem'Hadar."

Weir looked at the scientist, a questioning look in her eyes; Rodney's gaze flittered between hers and Shepard's. "Rodney?"

Thinking it to be a joke… or possibly an amazing coincidence, Rodney figured but mentioning a fictional alien race from a TV series despite the seriousness of the situation, he looked at the Major and saw the serious look in his eyes; he knew that Shepard was serious about what he saw and heard. Of that McKay had no doubt, but still, if he was right, a fictional race of alien soldiers from TV? "Describe them please, Major."

"Well, it was night on the planet, but from what I could see, they were grey skinned, wore dark military uniforms, carried some kind of energy rifles and they appeared out of nowhere. They just shimmered and appeared. And from the look on your face, McKay, I take it you know something, don't you?"

"What?" McKay asked suddenly. "How could I possibly…" He trailed off thinking that it had to be a coincidence; it just had to be! "… well… no! No, I'm sure it's just a coincidence. Has to be."

Shepard didn't believe him for one second. "You're sure?" Shepard asked as he took in the look on the Canadian's face before the scientist schooled his features once again.

"Yes I'm sure, Major. I think that we have more important things to be concerned about now anyway, wouldn't you agree?" The scientist reminded them before he checked a reading on his Laptop and then confirmed it on one of the Ancient consoles.

Shepard and Weir looked at the scientist again for another moment before they decided that he was right. Shepard knew that the scientist was sure that he knew that name as well as he did, but he had to concede the Canadian's point, they did have other things to worry about right now.

"Major, continue please." Requested Weir as she dismissed McKay and looked at the Air Force Major.

"OK, but I think I had better get Ford and Teyla up here as well." Shepard said; Weir understood the need of having Lt. Ford in the debriefing; but the Athosian? She was about to say something, but Shepard saw the look she was giving and quickly elaborated. "She knows about the Wraith and she's probably heard about this other race of aliens. We should find out what she knows." He elaborated.

Quickly seeing the Major's point after he had explained his reasoning, Elizabeth nodded at him while Rodney scoffed and muttered something she could barely make out. Shaking her head and trying her very best to ignore the muttering Canadian as he still went about trying to access the city's systems, Weir agreed and understood his reasoning; Teyla was a native of this Galaxy after all; she could provide them with valuable intelligence. And from what she had just been told about what had happened on Athos, she just knew that this report was going to be very interesting.

"Major Shepard, please bring Lt. Ford and..." She trailed off.

"Teyla." Shepard quickly filled in for her.

"… Teyla up here, please." She ordered before she started looking around the control room. Shepard nodded and quickly departed, knowing that Ford and Teyla were helping the Athosians settle in. As she moved about the control room, Elizabeth spotted a deserted office that overlooked the Gate room.

* * *

_**Wraith Hive Ship**_

_**Unknown Location**_

He didn't how long he had been out for, but as he was starting to come to; he could hear hushed voices close by. As consciousness returned to him, Col. Sumner vaguely remembered what had happened back on Athos: The attack, people running, screaming and the Wraith fighters and the Jem'Hadar.

He opened his eyes slowly; he noticed that he and the rest of his men were in a cell. It was dark and gloomy and it didn't inspire any warm and fuzzy feelings in him at all. He looked around and saw that they were not alone as well. Some of the Athosian's that had been taken were with them as well; one of them, Halling he remembered, turned, looking at him as he heard him coming around, the other Athosian who he saw back in the tent on the planet looked down at him as well but dismissed him just as quickly.

"Colonel Sumner." Halling said garnering the attention of Sergeant Bates and the rest of the Marines as they saw that he was finally waking up, they went over to help their CO stand. Bates and Halling helped him up as Sumner quickly took stock of the situation. He took another quick look around the cell and noticed that it was just human's inside, so he was wondering where the Wraith had taken the Jem'Hadar.

Halling seemed to pick up on his line of thought. "The… Jem'Hadar, I believe your men called them, were separated from us, Colonel. When I awoke earlier, it was only us in the cell. I do not know where they would be."

Sumner frowned but nodded, he shook off Bates' and the Athosian's help with a nod of thanks as he found his strength returning to his legs. Stepping away from the two of them, he walked over to the cell door, he noted that it looked like a metallic spiderweb, but when he touched it, it felt warm and fleshy. It was organic he surmised; he applied pressure onto it to see if it would budge but just as quickly found that he couldn't move it at all.

'Strong. Damn it.' Moving away from the door of the cell, Sumner then turned and moved back towards Halling. He needed answers and now was the time to get them. Before they didn't have any time left to them at all. "What do you know about the Jem'Hadar? What have we gotten ourselves into here?"

Halling looked back to his people; he had told them what he and Teyla had suspected about the strange looking aliens for a while now; it was only fair that Sumner and his people knew as well. "Teyla and I first started to hear rumours about them ten of our seasons ago from our trading partners; it was said that they had appeared on a world that was being culled by the Wraith. When they appeared, it was said that they had appeared out thin air."

Sumner nodded at that. Having seen the effect himself it was… impressive. He idly wondered if it was a natural ability the Jem'Hadar possessed or if their ability to disappear and reappear utilised a technological means. He gestured for Halling to continue as Bates and the rest of the Marines listened, but went back to watching from the cell door.

"When we had first heard about them, we had thought that they were the Ancestors themselves. Returning to defeat the Wraith and finally free the people of this Galaxy from their oppression, but after we had heard more about them from many other survivors of culled worlds, we began to believe otherwise."

Sumner looked at him when the tall Athosian mentioned the Ancestors. It was obvious that he was talking about the Ancients, but Sumner wondered if the Jem'Hadar had been created by the Ancients to fight the Wraith. It was a pertinent question and he had more running through his head and he wanted to ask Halling about what else he knew.

"I do not know anything more about them. It is only that by fighting the Wraith, they have brought hope to my people and hope to many others throughout the Galaxy. This is the first time I have been told that they had made an appearance on Athos, but considering what happened there…" He trailed off for a moment as everyone inside heard footsteps coming down the hallway; it appeared they didn't have long left. "…I believe you have inadvertently brought your people into a war between the Wraith and the Jem'Hadar."

The footsteps were becoming louder now; a few of the Marines could hear three distinct sets of footsteps. Sumner ordered his people away from the door, turning one last time towards Halling, he spoke with resignation. "Any idea what to expect?" Halling looked grimly at him. The expression told Sumner that he was not expecting anything good.

"Someone comes." Toran called out as he heard the footsteps getting louder now as the footfalls echoed down the corridor. Sumner took a look at the Athosian's and he saw that a few of them were nervous and scared, he felt for them. Being held captive by the enemy was unpleasant.

He turned towards Bates and the Marines, they were faring slightly better but he could see signs of nervousness on them as well. They didn't know the Wraith; they didn't know what to expect from the enemy. Only time would tell.

A Wraith turned the corner and strode down the hallway towards their cell; the Marines and Athosian's saw what it looked like. It was male, tall and thin with long white hair going down its back and wearing a long black floor length robe or coat. It was a humanoid, but it was clearly not human; they could see that it had a lot of teeth, green skin and clawed hands.

As it moved closer toward their cell, they could make out its eyes: Two yellow slit like eyes full of malicious intent and evil. It was accompanied by two guards, they were taller and more burly looking than the one in the coat and the others could make out that they were different from him. The guards had their faces obscured by coral like masks… well they thought that it was coral.

When the three had approached the cell, the door opened and they walked inside. Sumner was standing when they got near and approached them. "I'm Colonel Marshall Sum…"

Thrusting its arm out, the lead Wraith struck Sumner in the chest, throwing the Colonel back across the cell with such force he crashed into the wall and fell to the floor, the Marines tensed, prepared for anything that the Wraith would do next, but the lead Wraith looked at Toran and gestured at the Athosian with a look of anticipation.

Toran looked frightened as the lead Wraith smiled wide, showing it's ghastly looking teeth as if he could sense the fear that its mere presence instilled within the humans. One of the Wraith guards stalked toward him.

"No, please." Toran begged.

The guard grabbed the Athosian by the throat and lifted him off the floor effortlessly; carrying the frightened human in one hand as if it wasn't even a strain for him to do so the guard turned and walked out of the cell with the scared Athosian clinging to the Wraith's arm.

"Please, take me in his place." Halling called out, but Sumner's voice cut through his as he spoke.

"No, take me!" Sumner stood up as he addressed the lead Wraith. "We're the ones you're after, right? We fought back when you attacked these people. I'm their Leader."

The Wraith looked at him dismissively for a moment then turned to leave with the other guard. The door sealed behind them.

"Thank you Colonel, but they have no need to explain themselves to anyone." Halling said as they watched the retreating forms of the Wraith and the guard.

"Yeah, I got that."

* * *

_**Atlantis Control Room**_

_**Dr. Weir's Newfound Office**_

_**Twenty Minutes Later**_

After Ford and Shepard had given their report about what happened on the planet, Elizabeth truly wished that she could dial Earth right now, call General O'Neill and tell him to stick the job where the sun don't shine. She wanted to be an explorer, discover the lost city of the Ancients and learn their history, discover their secrets; not be drawn into a galaxy wide conflict between two alien races.

Elizabeth listened as Teyla begun speaking about the Wraith. "They are evil. I would leave it at that, but you want to know what I know about them?" She asked the woman.

"Yes, please. If there is any way we can find for us to try and coexist with them…" Elizabeth started to say, but Teyla cut her off. Neither of them missed the wide – eyed look that Major Shepherd shot Dr. Weir.

"Coexist? You are mistaken, Doctor. The Wraith _allows_ our kind to grow in number, and when that number reaches a certain point, they return to cull their human herd. Do you understand? We are their food supply."

Rodney and Elizabeth stared at her with wide eyes. Rodney went pale at the thought that an alien race used humans as livestock and Elizabeth wasn't soon far off either. Shepard and Ford didn't take the information lightly either, but they were more composed than the other two.

Teyla gave them a moment before she continued. "My people believed that it happens again and again. We are allowed to grow in number. Sometimes a few hundred years will pass before they awaken, sometimes sooner, but they always return. We have visited many worlds, but I know of none that were ever left untouched by the Wraith. The last great culling was five generations ago. Many people were taken from many, many worlds, but they still return in smaller numbers. To remind us of their power. Until…"

"Until the Jem'Hadar. Still it must've been a hell of a way to live." Shepard said.

"Yes." Teyla said, turning back and nodding at him.

"Cannibalistic aliens, oh please…!" McKay scoffed before he muttered something else under his breath that the others couldn't hear.

"You don't believe me, Dr. McKay?" Teyla asked as she and the others heard the Canadian's rebuttal.

Suddenly on the spot, Rodney coughed, and then responded. "Well, I, um, I – I believe what you think you saw, but…" He trailed off as he saw the Athosian's gaze narrowing at him.

Was it suddenly getting hotter in here? Rodney idly thought as he shifted in his seat under the Athosian's heated gaze, he looked around at the faces of the others and saw Shepard and Ford smirking at his discomfort, while Weir scowled at him.

Right, no help from them then, he figured. He was going to continue, but Teyla spoke first.

"It does not matter what you believe I thought I saw. Major Shepard was there and he saw them as well. And in regards to the Jem'Hadar, you have heard when he had reported to you of their advanced weaponry and apparent use of… beaming technology?" She turned to look at him, wondering if she got the term correct.

Shepard looked at her and nodded in return; Teyla turned back to the Canadian and continued. "Whoever they are, Dr. McKay the Jem'Hadar are a highly advanced people and are in conflict with the Wraith. They fought alongside your people in defence of mine. I am grateful to them for that. And it was Omak'arai who helped me, Jinto, Wex and Major Shepard to escape the attack."

Rodney went to retort, but Elizabeth interrupted. "I think we can all agree that the discovery of the Wraith and the Jem'Hadar merit further discussion for later." She stated, she then turned to look at Teyla and smiled at her. "Thank you Teyla. You and your people are welcome to stay here for as long as necessary. I offer my condolences to you for the people that were taken; if you'd like, Lieutenant Ford will escort you to your people."

Teyla nodded her head at Elizabeth in gratitude before rising from her chair. As she was about to leave, she turned to Shepard and spoke. "Thank you, Major."

Shepard told her that is was no problem and smiled at her; the Athosian Leader placed her hands on both sides of his head and brought their forehead's together. Everyone looked at the two of them for a moment. Weir smirked at the scene, as did Ford before he looked down at the floor to hide his grin. McKay rolled his eyes and mumbled something along the lines that to Elizabeth sounded like 'God, he's a Kirk.' before he looked away scowling.

Teyla soon pulled away from Shepard and lowered her hands before she smiled and nodded again before Ford escorted her to where the Athosian's were. Shepard watched her go, and then turned to glare at McKay. "I heard that."

* * *

_**Tritana Prime Command &amp; Control**_

_**Thirty Minutes Later**_

Fresh from his battle hours earlier in the Lantean sector, First Mears had returned to Tritana and made his way towards the C&amp;C to see Xander. The former Sunnydalian had been contacted by his friend while he was on his way back to the planet and had been told to report to him as soon as he beamed down to the surface. If Warren had any issue with Xander giving him commands, he didn't show it. It was a by – product from Halloween when they had dressed as Jem'Hadar. Considering that it was Xander's idea in the first place that the four of them dress as Dominion foot soldiers at the last minute since their plan to initially dress as four Starfleet Captains had fallen through.

He had postulated that the spell that had changed them in the first place must have taken that into account as Xander was made the First when the change occurred. With Xander being made the First, Warren had been made the Second while Jono was changed into the Third and Andrew, the Fourth.

It was meritocratic democracy at its finest, Warren posited as he thought back to that night; he would've liked it if he was made the First, but he supposed that Xander was probably the best qualified person for it. It was like an instinct that had been ingrained within him to accept Xander as the First.

When he and the others had been told about the truth of Sunnydale by Xander when the spell had been broken, he, Jono and Andrew were initially surprised, but the more they thought about all of the strange occurrences that had happened in the town, especially when Buffy Summers had arrived and the rumours about her had started about her, Willow and Xander and that British Librarian… Giles he idly remembered of the man's name, then the more that everything had eventually made sense to him and the others.

The PCP gang members that in fact turned out to be Vampires. The supposedly accidental deaths by BBQ forks and wild dog attacks to the neck actually turned out to be vampire attacks. It was crazy, but even he and Andrew couldn't deny the evidence once they had seen it.

After banishing the thoughts of a home long since gone from his mind, Warren focused more about the Galaxy that had been his home for eight years. He had soon neared the C&amp;C and quickly made his way inside. It was a bustle of activity as many Jem'Hadar were at their posts monitoring the war effort; Warren looked around for Xander and saw his friend standing near one of the main operations control stations waiting.

Warren walked over to the station were a few Jem'Hadar had quickly stood to attention as soon as he walked past before they went back to work. Warren nodded briefly before he carried on and greeted Xander. "Xand, you wanted to see me?"

Xander turned and Warren could immediately tell that his friend was all business. "War, you remember when you registered that gravimetric distortion coming from Lantea earlier?" He asked as he gestured for Warren to come and see what he was looking at. It was fleet deployments from the frontlines.

What was Xander thinking? Was Warrens' main thought as he looked at the layout; from his viewpoint, it looked like Xander wanted to… "Xander, why are you pulling ships from the Frontlines near Sateda, Thenora and Dalera? They haven't been secured from the Wraith yet."

Xander continued to sort through the fleet deployments as he spoke. "Those sectors are as good as ours already. Our forces have either pushed back or destroyed over eighty – five percent of the Wraith fleets in those sectors. And besides I'm only pulling sixteen percent of our ships back temporarily."

Warren boggled; out of all those ships in the three Sectors that Xander mentioned, there was over two hundred fifty attack ships, battlecruisers and battleships spread out over the three sectors of space. "But why do you need forty ships?"

Sighing, Xander told Warren what had happened at Athos. "The Wraith took the Athosian sector. I think they were after the listening post we had stationed there; somehow they found about it and launched a second offensive to take the planet; they attacked the Athosian settlement and culled some of the humans and some of our people. They also took some humans… from Earth apparently."

Warren did a double take. Humans from Earth had been on Athos at the time of the attack? He idly thought. "How the hell did humans from Earth…" He asked before he worked the answer out himself. "Lantea! So that's why you want the ships. You're hoping to form an alliance with the people on Lantea. But what's down there? I know that my ship detected the gravimetric distortion, so I know that there's a Stargate down there, but what else is down there?"

Xander told him. "Atlantis."

"The lost city? Earth found the lost city of the Ancients!?" The implications of that were staggering to Warren; it meant that Earth knew about the Stargates and the Ancients themselves. He tried to wrap his head around the fact that in the eight years that they have been here, possibly longer, Earth had begun exploring alien worlds. "OK, so you're going on a rescue op, right? But it's going to be at least a day before those ships get here…" He started to say.

"No, we're going to rendezvous en route to Lantea. Its' gonna be close but time is going to be a factor on this one." Xander said as he finalised the order for the ship redeployments. Once he was done, he handed the orders to an officer and told him to contact those ships' Captains and inform them to head to Lantea; the officer nodded and soon began relaying his Commander's orders to the ships in question.

Xander turned back towards Warren. "I need you here at the C&amp;C for the time being, War. I've been to see Andrew for a status update on Project Basestar. I'm impressed with the work he's managed to do in such short a time…"

Warren grinned at the news. Project Basestar had certainly been an ambitious idea when he and Andrew had initially come up with the project.

"… but, I've asked him to remove the Wraith systems he was going to incorporate into the Attack Raider's design and install our tech." Xander told him.

"What? But Xan…" Warren began.

"Hear me out, man." Xander said raising his hand up to forestall his friend's complaint. Warren quieted down and Xander continued. "I know you and Andy wanted to test out the insertion system, but the time it would've taken to solve the problem just isn't worth the wait." Xander reasoned. "He said that it would only take a week for him to finish the installation with our tech base; I want you to help him; get the Attack Raider prototype tested and into production ASAP… I want those birds and the Basestars up and flying, Warren. We need them now."

Warren sighed but nodded at his friend's order; understanding Xander's need for the fighters. He knew that the Defence Force needed the fighters to contend with the Wraith fighters. With them, the Wraith certainly had the numbers in any of their ship to ship engagements; the fighters that Andrew was working on would even the odds out greatly.

"Alright, I'll get right on it." He said to his friend, getting a grateful nod in return. "Just out of curiosity, what's the problem he's having with the Wraith systems?"

"He said that he can't get our systems to integrate with the Wraith tech he incorporated into the design… something about the EPS flow rate distribution affecting the other systems." Xander repeated.

Mears nodded at the explanation. Ever the resident tech genius alongside Andrew, his mind was already coming up with several ideas that could've possibly solved the problem, but as Xander had already ordered him to help Andrew remove the Wraith tech from the Attack Raider, it was a moot point now.

"I'll see what I can do. When are you leaving?" Warren asked; Xander looked behind him as he looked at the time on one of the monitors; he was expecting Omak'arai's ship to arrive momentarily. He had a detachment of Jem'Hadar soldiers waiting for him when the ship arrived. They were going to help rescue the humans that were taken.

"As soon as Omak'arai's' ship gets here; I'll be taking it back out. I've got a detachment from the Sixth platoon waiting on standby. I'm taking them with me." Xander answered.

"Do you know where they were taken to?" Warren asked as Xander hadn't told him if he knew the location they were taken to.

"No, that's why I'm heading to Lantea first. Omak'arai heard that one of the soldiers from Atlantis saw the symbols on the dialling device when the Wraith fighter that took our people was escaping. I'm going there to request they give me the symbols. You know that the symbols on the Stargates are matches for the constellations in Pegasus. Our computers can extrapolate where they were taken to from the symbols and I can go get our people and the humans." Xander finished as he walked back to the operations console.

Warren looked down at the display of ships and saw that the vessel's Xander had requested were already moving away from the various fronts and were heading towards Lantea as other ships moved to fill those vacant positions on the various Frontlines. At the speed they were going in Hyperspace, they would be there under three hours. He noticed another ship that was travelling in Hyperspace towards Tritana. Omak'arai's ship he mused as he spotted the IFF reading, it wasn't that far out now; just four light years away.

Warren assumed that that Xander was waiting until the ship was in range of their long range transports before leaving. The four of them all knew that Dominion technology in the show was highly advanced than even Starfleet's. They were able to transport over vast distances at a maximum of three light years thanks to the transponders fitted into the transport systems.

It was just a few minutes later when the C&amp;C had received a message from Omak'arai saying that he had reached the co – ordinates for transport. Xander nodded as he read the message and turned to his friend.

"It's time. Watch the place for me." He said to his friend with a smirk as he turned towards the doors to the C&amp;C and left. Xander made his way over to where the detachment of Jem'Hadar were waiting for him; when they saw him, the platoon of soldiers stood to attention as Xander walked over to a nearby weapons rack and picked up a polaron rifle, fitted the bayonet attachment to the weapon and then proceeded to place two Phasers into the holsters on his uniform.

When he had finished loading up, he turned around and saw that his warriors were similarly armed and a few were fitted with grenade belts as well and a few of them wielding the Kar'takin blade for hand to hand fighting.

Good he'd thought; better to have them than to not have them and want them. After taking in the readiness of his men, Xander addressed them.

"The Wraith have taken many of our brother's and human's from Athos prisoner and are no doubt, at this moment attempting to find out everything they know about us. I find this unacceptable, as should you. This is a rescue operation gentlemen; pure and simple." He said as he began walking left and right, addressing the detachment of warriors. We've received intel that a group of humans from Atlantis…" There were some murmurs from the group as Xander listened. "…arrived through the Stargate and made contact with the indigenous people just before the Wraith attacked." Xander stopped walking and stood in the middle of the floor as he continued the briefing, the murmurs had stopped soon after. "We believe that the Wraith had discovered the location of the listening post stationed there, and shortly after our forces that were left defending the sector were destroyed, the Wraith attacked the old city. As per standard procedure, the Incursion Protocols were implemented, but as you know there was a Lantean ZPM production facility there; we assume that the Wraith attack had damaged some or most of the systems there and a chain reaction occurred. Athos is gone."

There was more murmuring and Xander could hear some of his soldiers growling in anger as they processed the news. "We're heading to the planet Lantea to make contact with the group of humans from Atlantis; they had some of their people taken along with some of the natives when Athos was attacked. We know at least one of the human soldiers saw which symbols on the Stargate the Wraith fighter dialled when escaping so we're going to make contact."

He waited for a moment as he looked at his men, when he mentioned that Jem'Hadar had been taken, he saw a few of them tense up and more started growling. He knew now that his warriors were now baying for Wraith blood; which was just what he wanted. He grinned ferally before he continued. "Make no mistake; we will make the Wraith pay for taking our brother's and the lives of those lost to us! We will not stop until our brothers have been freed and the Wraith has been made to pay for their actions!"

He stopped as the warriors cheered out at the thought of making the Wraith pay in blood for the many atrocities they had committed; Xander waited until they had gotten it out of their system before he finished. "The rescue of the prisoner's is the priority, here gentlemen. Everything else is secondary. Elements of the Second, Fifth, Twelfth and Twenty – First fleets at Sateda, Thenora and Dalera are en route to rendezvous with us at Lantea. From there, once we have secured the Stargate symbols from the humans, we will be going in fast and going in hard. Understood?"

"YES, SIR." They all shouted. And Xander believed them.

Reaching for his communicator, Xander contacted the C&amp;C and told them to patch his communicator through to Omak'arai's ship. _"Acknowledged Sir. Standby…"_

A moment passed until Omak'arai's voice sounded over the communicator. _"This is Second Omak'arai. Go ahead Sir."_

"Omak, we're ready for transport. Beam us up, and then set a course for Lantea, best speed." Xander ordered.

"_Acknowledged Commander. Standby."_

Just as the line went dead, Xander and everyone were enveloped in the transporter effect and were shortly beamed away.

They were going to get their people back.

Seconds later, the C&amp;C registered the IFF of Omak'arai's attack ship entering Hyperspace on course for Lantea.

* * *

_**Wraith Hive Ship**_

_**Unknown Location**_

Sumner and the others waited inside the cell trying to think of a plan of escape. Everyone inside had no idea how much time had passed since they were taken, but Sumner knew that his people would be looking for him. He listened as his Marines suggested that they jump the Wraith when they return, they had the numbers, but no weapons. He stood next to the Athosian's as Bates and a few of the Marines were waiting on either side of the door as they heard three sets of footsteps coming down the corridor once more.

"Get ready." Bates said as the Marines waited. Soon the Wraith from before and the two guards had returned and as the cell opened they stepped through.

"NOW!" Bates shouted as he jumped at the leading Wraith and like Sumner before, the Wraith acted quickly with sharp, superior reflexes as he dodged to the side of the Marines' attack and grabbed the man and threw him head first into the wall. Sumner watched as he saw the man fall and crumple to the floor. Sumner charged the Wraith but again he was pushed back, he looked to the Athosian's and saw that apart from Halling, they were too fearful to help, but not even Halling moved to help him.

The rest of the Marines weren't faring any better themselves; some of them had been thrown against the cell walls like Bates had while the two guards held three others by the throat and held them off the floor. Sumner had to do a double take again at the show of strength the two guards exhibited. Shaking his head as he got up, he shouted. "ENOUGH! YOU WIN, YOU BASTARDS. LET THEM GO."

The lead Wraith sneered at him before he tilted his head to the side. Sumner watched as the guard holding up the two Marines dropped them to the floor, but the remaining guard still held one other Marine.

"Let him go; you've proven we can't beat you. Release him." Sumner stated calmly, Bates had recovered enough to stand and glare with hate filled eyes at the three aliens. Inside, the Marine was kicking himself because the plan had backfired; the Wraith looked at Bates and sneered in his direction, showing the Marine a rictus grin before he turned and walked out of the cell. The guard carrying the Marine walked out behind him as the man struggled futilely in the tall alien's vice – like grip.

The cell door closed behind the guard as Sumner and Bates rushed to the metal like spiderweb. "GET BACK HERE! I'M HIS COMMANDING OFFICER; BRING HIM BACK. DO YOU HEAR ME? BRING HIM BACK!" He shouted out to the retreating alien's form as the malicious being ignored his plea. He watched with ever increasing despair as the alien guard walked down the corridor with the Marine before he disappeared from view.

Sumner turned and went to check up on the Marines that had been knocked out while Bates checked on the two men the other alien guard had released, when they saw that they were alright, everyone startled when they suddenly heard faint screaming coming down the corridor. Sumner took note that the Athosian's turned away from the noise as he stood and went over to the cell door.

After a few moments, Sumner could tell that the screams were a mixture of human and… something else. "What the hell is that?" He asked aloud.

It was Halling that replied as he forced himself to look directly at the Colonel. As memories from long ago replayed in the back of his mind as it did with the other Athosian's. "It is the Wraith. Feeding." He replied to the Colonel.

* * *

_**Author's Note: -**_

Hey everyone, here's Chapter four for you. Like the previous chapters this has been rewritten and differs from the original on TTH, hopefully for the best. This is now up to date with this posting; I started working on Chapter five a while ago but stopped when I had the idea to write the Prideful. In other words, my muse decided to leave me high and dry on it and I had to hire a new one! However with the posting of this story on this site, my muse has resurrected the story.

Chapter five should be up soon. Read and review.

Peace


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